Investing.com– U.S. stocks traded in a mixed fashion Thursday, steadying after healthy growth data while the tech sector remained out of favor.
At 09:35 ET (13:35 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 10 points, or 0.1%, while the S&P 500 dropped 5 points, or 0.2%, and NASDAQ Composite slipped 60 points, or 0.4%.
The previous session’s negative tone, which saw the tech-heavy indices close sharply lower, has been lessened by the release of economic data pointing to an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve as soon as September.
Q2 GDP data shows strength, prices fall
U.S. gross domestic product grew 2.8% in the second quarter, versus forecasts of a 2% growth, and an improvement from the 1.4% growth sen in the first three months of the year.
However, the prices component in the release saw a fall to 2.3%, from 3.1% in the first quarter..
This is exactly the type of cooling of inflationary pressures that the Federal Reserve is looking for, and comes ahead of Friday’s PCE price index – which is the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge.
At the same time, a separate report showed durable goods orders fell 6.6% in June, compared with expectations for a 0.3% rise.
Chipotle (NYSE:CMG), IBM advance on strong Q2; Ford slumps
There quarterly earnings season continued apace Thursday.
American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) stock fell 3% after the carrier cut its annual profit forecast as uneven demand trends and overcapacity in certain markets dampened its pricing power.
Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) rose 8% after the toy maker posted a smaller-than-expected drop in second-quarter as steady digital gaming demand offset a slump in toy sales, while cost-control strategies helped it beat profit expectations.
IBM (NYSE:IBM) rose 2% after increased interest in AI helped the tech consulting firm log stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings.
Ford (NYSE:F) slumped over 13% after clocking disappointing earnings, as automobile sales slowed sharply amid decreased consumer spending.
More than 25% of companies in the S&P 500 have reported their second-quarter earnings, according to FactSet data, and although some major tech stocks have disappointed, the overall nature of the earnings session has been generally positive.
Crude slips on demand concerns
Crude prices retreated Thursday, as concerns about waning demand, especially from China, the world’s largest crude importer, continued to weigh.
By 09:35 ET, the U.S. crude futures (WTI) dropped 1% to $76.78 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 1.2% to $80.77 a barrel.
Both benchmarks settled higher on Wednesday, snapping consecutive sessions of declines after the Energy Information Administration said U.S. crude inventories fell by 3.7 million barrels last week, more than expected.
However, prices remained close to two-month lows as concerns over waning demand, coupled with forecasts of a potential oil market surplus in 2025 and talk of a ceasefire in the Middle East kept traders largely bearish towards crude.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
