US open: Nasdaq trades higher as Apple leads the way

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks were higher early on Thursday as major indices attempted to bounce back from yet another losing session. As of 1540 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.02% at 37,273.08, while the S&P 500 was 0.51% firmer at 4,763.32 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.12% stronger at 15,022.06.

The Dow opened 6.41 points higher on Thursday, doing little to reclaim losses recorded in the previous session.

Market participants have grown worried that a strong December retail sales report could result in fewer-than-anticipated rate cuts from the central bank, with traders currently pricing in an approximately 56% chance of a quarter percentage point rate cut in March. Also of note, the benchmark ten-year Treasury yield crossed the 4.1% line on Thursday.

On the macro front, Americans lined up for state assistance at a decelerated pace in the week ended 18 January, according to the Labor Department. Initial jobless claims fell by 16,000 week-on-week to 187,000 for the lowest reading since September 2022 and well below market expectations for a print of 207,000. Continuing claims fell by 26,000 to 1.8m in the earlier week, the least since October 2023, indicating that Americans were having a somewhat easier to get into new positions, while the four-week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, fell by 4,750 to 203,250.

Elsewhere, housing starts in the US fell less than expected in December while building permits rose strongly, according to data released on Thursday by the Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annual rate, privately‐owned housing starts fell 4.3% over the month to 1.460m, reversing sharply after 10.8% growth in November. However, this was 7.6% ahead of December 2022 and above the consensus estimate of 1.426m.

Finally, the Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index rose 2.2 points in January to a reading of -10.6 for an 18th negative reading in the past 20 months. The indices for current new orders and current shipments both rose in January but also remained in negative territory.

Still to come, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta president Raphael Bostic will deliver a speech at 1705 GMT.

In the corporate space, Apple shares were up in pre-market after the tech behemoth was on the receiving end of an upgrade from analysts at Bank of America.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $47.19 2.46% Boeing Co. (BA) $208.00 2.43% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $187.10 2.42% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $293.90 0.94% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $91.10 0.84% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $379.91 0.72% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $273.37 0.71% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $392.15 0.69% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $280.42 0.64% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $357.71 0.57%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $504.68 -3.86% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $147.46 -1.65% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $299.87 -1.38% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $141.82 -0.91% Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $117.14 -0.84% American Express Co. (AXP) $179.66 -0.74% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $22.03 -0.61% International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $165.13 -0.57% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $166.24 -0.51% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $59.69 -0.49%

S&P 500 - Risers

Fastenal Co. (FAST) $67.91 7.15% Carnival Corp. (CCL) $17.65 4.69% W.W. Grainger Inc. (GWW) $872.07 3.93% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $582.69 3.59% Royal Caribbean Cr (RCL) $126.56 3.38% Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $17.63 3.22% Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $164.77 2.87% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $157.66 2.80% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $773.93 2.79% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $368.52 2.69%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Humana Inc. (HUM) $398.95 -10.90% Discover Financial Services (DFS) $101.37 -6.78% CVS Health Corp (CVS) $73.93 -3.98% Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $504.68 -3.86% Kohls Corp. (KSS) $24.00 -3.79% Elevance Health Inc. (ELV) $458.30 -3.74% Keycorp (KEY) $13.40 -3.14% Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $26.75 -2.83% Centene Corp. (CNC) $75.92 -2.67% Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $117.72 -2.46%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Fastenal Co. (FAST) $67.91 7.15% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $582.69 3.59% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $157.66 2.80% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $773.93 2.79% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $368.52 2.69% Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) $1,132.30 2.59% Intel Corp. (INTC) $47.19 2.46% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $187.10 2.42% Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $85.35 2.41% QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $142.57 2.34%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $132.51 -2.14% Synopsys Inc. (SNPS) $498.51 -1.84% JD.com, Inc. (JD) $22.03 -1.72% Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.83 -1.53% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $299.87 -1.38% Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $37.27 -1.38% Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $428.05 -1.32% Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $588.44 -1.29% Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $85.50 -1.13% Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $8.48 -0.99%