US stocks rose Thursday morning after a strong performance on Wednesday.
In indexes at around 12:15 p.m. ET, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) was up 0.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was trading near the zero line. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) gained 0.6%.
Bond returns were mixed. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell to 3.56%. The front end of the yield curve, two-year yields, jumped to 4.1%. The dollar index fell to $102.
Meanwhile, the VIX moved below 20 in a key signal that volatility has stabilized as traders bet the fallout from banking lies in the rear view.
The S&P 500 closed up 1.4% on Wednesday from before the Silicon Valley bank fiasco. Real estate and technology were the best performing sectors, while gold and oil fell. Government bond returns were mixed while the Nasdaq 100 (^NDX), which tracks the 100 largest companies by market capitalization excluding those in the financial sector, officially entered a bull market.
Intel (INTC) stock was the biggest single gainer, jumping more than 7% after the company announced that its new server chips will launch sooner than expected. Shares rose another 2.5% early Thursday.
Also on Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chief Banking Supervisor Michael Barr signaled that the central bank intends to maintain its stance in its “meeting by meeting judgment on interest rates” and that “incoming data” will continue to be analyzed. These comments were in line with Chairman Jerome Powell’s recent comments, which did little to change market participants’ expectations for a rate hike in May.
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 28: Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board for Supervision Michael S. Barr (R) testifies before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs March 28, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Wall Street is also paying attention to recent developments from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The FDIC mulls plans to increase fees paid by larger banks to bolster its bank bailout fund after the agency suffered $23 billion in damage to cover costs at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, reported Bloomberg.
The story goes on
Elsewhere this afternoon, Boston Federal Reserve Chair Susan Collins, Richmond Fed Chair Thomas Barkin and Minneapolis Fed Chair Neel Kashkari are expected.
On the economic front, jobless claims rose to 198,000, up 7,000 from the previous week ended March 25, slightly above expectations of 196,000. Regardless, the US economy expanded at an annualized rate of 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2022, slightly below previous estimates of 2.7% growth.
“The slight downward revision of Q4 GDP shows that the economy ended 2022 with marginally less momentum,” Oren Klachkin, senior US economist at Oxford Economics, wrote after the release.
“Looking ahead, this year the economy will take the full brunt of tighter credit conditions and Fed policy, and inflation is expected to remain above its historical trend and credit availability,” the economist added.
Here are some trend ticker on Yahoo Finance:
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Charles Schwab Corporation (BLACK): Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Cyprys downgraded his buy equivalent rating on Schwab for the first time since he began monitoring the brokerage firm over seven years ago.
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Alibaba Group Holding Limited (BABA): Company executives provided the latest update on restructuring plans to split the company into six entities. CEO Daniel Zhang told investors Thursday, “Alibaba will be more of an asset and capital operator than a business operator in relation to the group’s companies.”
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bed bath beyond (BBBY): The struggling retailer said it would sell up to $300 million worth of shares in bailout funding after it reported fourth-quarter sales results and missed analysts’ expectations.
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EVgo (EVGO): The electric vehicle charging company posted better-than-expected revenue of $27.3 million in the fourth quarter, while Wall Street was expecting revenue of $20 million.
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Mullen Automotive (MULN): The California-based EV startup filed a lawsuit against news agency dot.LA, allegedly accusing the article’s author of “publishing false and defamatory statements about Mullen, including false and defamatory statements regarding the terms of a settlement agreement of a Civil Action”.
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Rivian Automotive, Inc. (RIVN): The stock rallied as much as 9% during Wednesday’s trading session after Needham, an investment firm, said it was positive on the risk and reward going into EV delivery data for the first quarter, which may be next week to be announced.
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RH (RH): The luxury home furniture company missed its sales and earnings last quarter. RH CEO Gary Friedman blamed the poor quarterly results on the Fed, inflation, the underperforming stock market and the banking crisis.
In the crypto market, bitcoin (BTC-USD) is up over 17% over the past two weeks, briefly surpassing $29,000 on Thursday before retreating back to $28,000 amid regulatory headwinds.
Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @daniromerotv
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