US STOCKS-S&P 500, Nasdaq snap losing streaks after jobless claims rise
08/12/2022 21:59
(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock
markets, click LIVE/ or type LIVE/ in a news window.)
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Weekly jobless claims rise in line with estimates
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Moderna, Pfizer up as FDA authorizes updated COVID
boosters
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Exxon climbs after boosting buyback program
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Indexes up: Dow 0.55%, S&P 0.75%, Nasdaq 1.13%
(Adds closing prices)
By David French
Dec 8 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 .SPX ended higher on
Thursday, snapping a five-session losing streak, as investors
interpreted data showing a rise in weekly jobless claims as a
sign the pace of interest rate hikes could soon slow.
Wall Street's main indexes had come under pressure in recent
days, with the S&P 500 shedding 3.6% since the beginning of
December on expectations of a longer rate-hike cycle and
downbeat economic views from some top company executives.
Such thinking had also weighed on the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC , which had posted four straight losing sessions prior to
Thursday's advance on the tech-heavy index.
Stocks rose as investors cheered data showing the number of
Americans filing claims for jobless benefits increased
moderately last week, while unemployment rolls hit a 10-month
high toward the end of November.
The report follows data last Friday that showed U.S.
employers hired more workers than expected in November and
increased wages, spurring fears that the Fed might stick to its
aggressive stance to tame decades-high inflation.
Markets have been swayed by data releases in recent days,
with investors lacking certainty ahead of Federal Reserve
guidance next week on interest rates.
Such behavior means Friday's producer price index and
the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey will
likely dictate whether Wall Street can build on Thursday's
rally.
"The market has to adjust to the fact that we're moving from
a stimulus-based economy - both fiscal and monetary - into a
fundamentals-based economy, and that's what we're grappling with
right now," said Wiley Angell, chief market strategist
at Ziegler Capital Management.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 183.56 points,
or 0.55%, to close at 33,781.48; the S&P 500 .SPX gained 29.59
points, or 0.75%, to finish at 3,963.51; and the Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC added 123.45 points, or 1.13%, at 11,082.00.
Nine of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors rose, led by a 1.6%
gain in technology stocks .SPLRCT .
Most mega-cap technology and growth stocks gained. Apple
Inc AAPL.O , Nvidia Corp NVDA.O and Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O
rose between 1.2% and 6.5%.
Microsoft Corp MSFT.O ended 1.2% higher, despite giving up
some intraday gains after the Federal Trade Commission filed a
complaint aimed at blocking the tech giant's $69 billion bid to
buy Activision Blizzard Inc ATVI.O . The "Call of Duty" games
maker closed 1.5% lower.
The energy index .SPNY was an exception, slipping 0.5%,
despite Exxon Mobil Corp XOM.N gaining 0.7% after announcing
it would expand its $30-billion share repurchase program. The
sector had been under pressure in recent sessions as commodity
prices slipped: U.S. crude CLc1 is now hovering near its level
at the start of 2022.
Meanwhile, Moderna Inc MRNA.O advanced 3.2% after the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration authorized COVID-19 shots from the
vaccine maker that target both the original coronavirus and
Omicron sub-variants for use in children as young as six months
old.
The regulator also approved similar guidance for fellow
COVID vaccine maker Pfizer Inc PFE.N , which rose 3.1%, and its
partner BioNTech, whose U.S.-listed shares BNTX.O gained 5.6%.
Rent the Runway Inc RENT.O posted its biggest ever one-day
gain, jumping 74.3%, after the clothing rental firm raised its
2022 revenue forecast.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.07 billion shares,
compared with the 10.90 billion average for the full session
over the last 20 trading days.
The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and three new
lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 82 new highs and 232 new
lows.
(Reporting by Shubham Batra, Ankika Biswas, Johann M Cherian in
Bengaluru and David French in New York; Editing by Vinay
Dwivedi, Sriraj Kalluvila, Anil D'Silva and Richard Chang)
((Shubham.Batra@thomsonreuters.com;))