Stock market today: S&P 500 notches fresh record on labor-market data and China stimulus pledge
US stocks climbed on Thursday amid positive economic data and promises from China to roll out further stimulus measures. The S&P 500 notched a fresh record.
A surge in Micron’s stock led the gain, fueled by a better-than-expected earnings report and guidance. The memory chipmaker was up as much as 20% at intraday highs, and closed 15% higher.
Thursday’s gains were also fueled by a pledge from Beijing to support China’s economy with further stimulus measures, just days after the country unveiled a blitz of policies to reinvigorate its sluggish economy and real-estate market.
Meanwhile, new jobless-claims data fell unexpectedly, offering a sign of stability for the labor market and fueling further bets for aggressive rate cuts.
Heading into Friday, traders are eagerly awaiting personal consumption expenditure data, due Friday.
Here’s where US indexes stood at 10:10 a.m. on Thursday:
- S&P 500: 5,745.37 up 0.4%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 42,175.11, up 0.6% (260 points)
- Nasdaq composite: 18,190.29, up 0.6%
Here’s what else is going on today:
- It’s refinancing time: Americans are already capitalizing on lower rates
- It could soon get a lot harder for Russia to deal in Chinese yuan as a key US license is set to expire mid-October.
- Russia’s economy is signaling a fate worse than recession as inflation rises while the economy cools.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
- Oil futures fell. WTI crude dipped 3.29% to $67.32 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 3.13% to $71.13 a barrel.
- Gold was up 0.01% to $2,685 per ounce.
- The 10-year Treasury yield rose six basis points to 3.794%.
- Bitcoin rose 0.31% to $57,745.72
