4:10pm: S&P 500 closes at record high as market shakes off a key inflation report
The US stock market ended the week with a surge after the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index (CPI) revealed a high inflation rate for November.
The S&P 500 closed at 4,712 points, up by 44 points or 0.95%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.61% higher at 35,971.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq saw a 0.73% surge by the end of the day, closing at 15,630.
12:10pm: US equities higher midday
US stock stood higher midday despite a significant spike in the inflation rate.
The consumer price index, which measures the cost of a wide-ranging basket of goods and services, rose 0.8% for the month, good for a 6.8% pace on a year-over-year basis, and the fastest rate since June 1982.
As of noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 51 points, or 0.14%, to 35,814. The S&P 500 rose 23 points, or 0.50%, to 4,690.
And the tech-heavy Nasdaq increased 43 points, or 0.28%, to 15,561.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading group IG, said that investors appear to be taking rising inflation in stride.
“Inflation is set to remain with us for a while yet, but the past 30 years suggest such spikes tend to fade in time, potentially lessening the impetus to keep raising rates in 2022,” he said.
He added: “US CPI came in line with expectations, but prices continue to rise, meaning that while the pressure on the Fed to raise rates hasn’t increased much as a result of today’s data, it doesn’t really lessen it either. The broad increases across a variety of categories suggest that this is more than just a temporary phenomenon, hence the Fed’s decision to ease away from the infamous ‘transitory’ description, but in some ways this is still the result of shutting down and reopening the US and global economy”
The biggest gainer on the day so far is Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL), up 16% to $102.83 a share.
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9.48am: US stocks start higher
Wall Street shares headed north on Friday despite a high US consumer inflation print for November, which put the Federal Reserve's monetary tightening stance firmly back in the spotlight.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained over 185 points at 35,940. The broader S&P 500 advanced over 36 at 4,703. The tech-laden Nasdaq index surged over 145 at 15,662.
"The Federal Reserve is likely to announce it will wrap up bond purchases sooner than expected at its meeting next week, especially in light of another strong inflation print on Friday," said Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at Thinkmarkets.com.
According to official data, inflation surged 6.8% year-over-year last month to the fastest rate for nearly 40 years.
"There was an interesting initial reaction to the latest US inflation report, which showed consumer prices rose to their highest level since 1982," he noted.
"Although the data was more or less in line with what analysts were expecting, the fact that dollar sold off and stock index futures rose in the immediate aftermath of the report suggests investors were relieved prices ‘only’ rose 0.8% on the month to take the headline CPI to 6.8% year-over-year from 6.2% previously."
6.45am: US stocks seen opening up
US stocks are expected to open higher as investors await the release of inflation data for November, which US President Joe Biden has warned could be high.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.27% higher in Friday pre-market trading, while the broader S&P 500 index added 0.39% and those for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 gained 0.41%.
In a statement on Thursday, Biden said rises in the costs of energy and other goods, while starting to ease, were likely to reflect in the consumer price index (CPI).
Stocks closed lower on Thursday ahead of the inflation data, due for release at 8:30am Eastern Time before the markets open.
The Dow fell by less than a point to 35,755 while the S&P 500 decreased 0.72% to 4,667. The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 1.71% to 15,517.
“The CPI is expected to hit a 40-year high and rise by 6.8% in November, +0.7% month-on-month,” Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, noted.
“That would mark a sharp acceleration from October’s 6.2% print – the highest in over 30 years. Given Biden’s comments, 7% is not out of the realms of possibility. Such a number piles pressure on the Fed to accelerate its tapering of asset purchases – I expect it to confirm this at the FOMC meeting next week. Markets are already pricing for potentially 3 rate hikes next year, so a hawkish Fed is already discounted.”