Major US market indexes closed around all-time highs on Thursday, as data indicated wholesale inflation slowed somewhat in January and President Trump issued a softer-than-expected tariff executive order. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.5% on Thursday, while the S&P 500 gained 1% to finish less than 0.1% shy of a record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.8%, falling only 0.7% short of its previous high. Stocks closed largely down yesterday as statistics indicated inflation increased last month, potentially complicating the Fed’s path to neutral interest rates. On Thursday, new data was released: the Producer Price Index gained 0.4% last month, above experts’ expectations but falling short of December’s 0.5% increase. Core PPI, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, increased 0.3%, marking a slowdown from December.
According to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, the news increased traders’ optimism that interest rates will be slashed further this year. Treasury rates fell following the data, with the 10-year yield falling to 4.53%, wiping out yesterday’s CPI-related gain. On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order asking agencies to investigate applying reciprocal duties. The decree did not instantly impose additional charges.
Big tech companies were mainly higher on Thursday, led by Tesla, which jumped almost 6% after temporarily appearing in a State Department expenditure prediction. Apple gained 2%, while Nvidia’s stock increased by around 3%. The rest of the Magnificent Seven rallied, including Meta Platforms, which had its seventeenth straight positive session. Broadcom was the only trillion-dollar technology company whose shares fell.
Cisco Systems stock jumped 2% Thursday after the networking equipment giant exceeded quarterly profit expectations and boosted its full-year guidance. Applovin (APP), which had already risen more than 700% in the previous year, jumped another 24% after reporting better-than-expected results. On the opposite end of the scale, Reddit shares sank 5% due to poor user growth, while equipment firm Deere slid 2% after reporting quarterly revenues that were far lower than expected. Both software businesses, the Trade Desk and Datadog, fell 33% and 8%, respectively, after reporting profits.
The price of Bitcoin fell marginally to $96,500. Gold futures increased to around $2,960 per ounce, barely short of the all-time high. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures recovered from an early low to trade at $71.50 a barrel.
