US close: Stocks advance after flurry of data

Thursday proved to be a fruitful day for Wall Street, with all of the major stock indices closing in the green, and the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite closed at 14-month highs amidst a flurry of economic data.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.26% at 34,408.06, as the S&P 500 ended the trading day ahead 1.22% at 4,425.84.

The Nasdaq Composite, populated heavily by tech stocks, gained 1.15% to close out the session at 13,782.82.

In currencies, the dollar was last 0.03% weaker against sterling to trade at 78.2p, while it slid 0.02% on the euro to 91.35 euro cents.

The greenback showed the most significant change against the yen, last falling 0.29% to change hands at JPY 139.88.

“Dollar bulls have seen their gains slip away, as the greenback reverses last night’s gains,” said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.

“The Fed might be keen to suggest it’s not on pause, but the market clearly believes otherwise - the euro is rallying hard, and gold has seen some buyers emerge once again.

“But with plenty of Fed speakers on the calendar next week an attempt to burnish the Fed’s hawkish credentials is a distinct possibility.”

Initial jobless claims unchanged as retail sales rise

In economic news, fresh data revealed unexpected steadiness in the US jobs market last week, with initial unemployment claims remaining unchanged at 262,000, according to the Department of Labor.

Economists had predicted a drop to 245,000, marking a higher than anticipated unemployment rate.

The week ended 3 June also saw an increase in ongoing unemployment claims, with 20,000 additional claims bringing the total to 1.775 million.

US consumers meanwhile maintained their spending pace in May, with data from the Department of Commerce showing a 0.3% month-on-month rise in total retail sales, amounting to $686.57bn.

The increase exceeded consensus predictions of a 0.2% decline, and surpassed April's unrevised gain of 0.4%.

When automobile and parts sales were excluded, retail sales inched up by 0.1%, aligning with consensus.

Retail sales were 0.4% higher when petrol stations' sales were also excluded.

Elsewhere, manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region revealed a slightly higher decline than predicted in June.

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's regional factory index recorded a dip from April's -10.4 to -13.7, compared to the forecasted -12.3.

The decrease in the new orders sub-index from -8.9 to -11.0 was primarily responsible for the headline gauge's fall.

Additionally, the prices paid sub-index slightly declined from 10.9 to 10.5, and the employment sub-index improved notably from -8.6 to -0.4.

On a positive note, the business outlook sub-index for the upcoming six months bounced back from -10.3 to 12.7.

In a surprising turn, a separate regional survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed a significant rebound, registering 6.6 for June, a considerable shift from May's -31.8 and well above consensus expectations for -15.6.

Regional banks in the green while Kroger snaps rally

In equities, fast-casual restaurant operator Cava Group rocketed 99% on its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company's shares closed well above their initial public offering price of $22 per share.

Regional banks also garnered attention, with shares across the sector gaining ground by the close of Thursday.

PacWest Bancorp rose by 1.36%, and Valley National Bancorp increased by 3.06%.

On the downside, grocery heavyweight Kroger saw its shares decline 2.69%, ending a five-day rally.

Despite beating consensus on first-quarter profit and maintaining its full-year guidance, the company's quarterly net sales fell slightly short of expectations.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Dow Jones - Risers

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $348.10 3.19%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $228.44 2.77%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $36.44 1.99%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $51.93 1.90%
3M Co. (MMM) $103.81 1.82%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $247.67 1.79%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $32.02 1.62%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $292.61 1.45%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $175.97 1.39%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $148.45 1.39%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $112.41 -0.40%
American Express Co. (AXP) $173.81 -0.38%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $339.74 0.39%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $92.94 0.53%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $157.73 0.55%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $61.23 0.61%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $35.82 0.67%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $109.40 0.68%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $158.28 0.76%

S&P 500 - Risers

Lennar Corp. Class A (LEN) $119.81 4.41%
CVS Health Corp (CVS) $69.50 4.28%
AutoZone Inc. (AZO) $2,496.99 4.08%
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) $17.45 3.81%
Estee Lauder Co. Inc. (EL) $199.41 3.77%
Coty Inc. Class A (COTY) $12.46 3.75%
US Bancorp (USB) $33.29 3.71%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $221.43 3.69%
AES Corp. (AES) $21.49 3.62%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $81.04 3.61%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $0.00 -100.00%
Arista Networks Inc. (ANET) $163.50 -3.32%
Kroger Co. (KR) $45.94 -2.69%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $176.68 -2.63%
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) $124.24 -2.43%
Hilton Inc (HLT) $140.67 -2.01%
Welltower Inc (WELL) $80.15 -1.70%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $107.11 -1.67%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $472.58 -1.66%
Western Union Co. (WU) $11.63 -1.52%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $221.43 3.69%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $132.76 3.68%
Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.92 3.68%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $81.04 3.61%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $65.85 3.54%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $39.96 3.42%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $333.42 3.33%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $224.31 3.22%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $348.10 3.19%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $281.83 3.10%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $0.00 -100.00%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $176.68 -2.63%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $107.11 -1.67%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $472.58 -1.66%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $85.36 -1.47%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $621.00 -1.43%
Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $189.66 -1.16%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $6.24 -1.11%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $426.53 -0.80%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $140.11 -0.75%