US close: Stocks rise as consumer inflation cools in December

Wall Street trading finished in positive territory on Thursday, as investors digested last month's all-important consumer price index.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.64% at 34,189.97, as the S&P 500 added 0.34% to 3,983.17 and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.64% firmer at 11,001.10.

The Dow closed 216.96 points higher on Thursday, extending the gains it recorded in Wednesday’s session.

“While the job picture remains strong, the Fed will be pleased to see that the inflation outlook is getting better too,” said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.

“Steady declines in the rate of price increases might not be too much comfort for consumers, but they are music to the ears of stock investors.

“For the dollar, however, it sets the scene for further declines, continuing the trend from the end of last year.”

December's CPI print was in focus, with the data revealing that the cost of living in the US had slipped a tad more than expected last month.

According to the Department of Labor, the annual rate of headline consumer prices fell from 7.1% for November to 6.5% in December, beating consensus estimates for a print of 6.6%.

At the core level, which strips out the volatile food and energy components, CPI was up by 5.7% year-on-year, versus 6.0% in the month before and in line with economists' forecasts.

Investors would be using the report to assess the outlook for the Federal Reserve's rate-hiking campaign, with declining inflation likely to lead the central bank to halt its rate-rising campaign in the spring.

Elsewhere on the macro front, Americans filed unemployment claims at a decelerated clip in the seven days ended 7 January, hitting their lowest level in more than three months.

According to the Labor Department, initial jobless claims fell by 1,000 to 205,000, well and truly short of the 215,000 figures expected on the Street, adding to recent evidence of a tight labour market.

In equities, floundering retailer Bed Bath & Beyond rocketed 50.14%, extending the meme stock’s gains after it recorded its biggest single-day rise ever on Wednesday.

Walt Disney was ahead 3.61% after it announced Nike executive chairman Mark Parker would become its new chairman.

American Airlines Group ascended 9.71% after saying it expected profits to rise further in the fourth quarter.

The other legacy carriers were in the green as well, with Delta Air Lines up 3.72% and United Airlines 7.52% firmer.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Additional reporting by Iain Gilbert.

Dow Jones - Risers

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $99.81 3.61%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $149.60 3.24%
Boeing Co. (BA) $214.34 3.02%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $255.07 1.73%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $58.52 1.63%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $41.81 1.53%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $369.94 1.50%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $30.29 1.47%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $238.51 1.16%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $177.10 1.07%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $61.21 -1.29%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $36.66 -1.24%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $144.81 -0.90%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $266.69 -0.79%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $270.92 -0.73%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $149.81 -0.56%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $174.00 -0.50%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $49.00 -0.43%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $139.49 -0.10%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $133.41 -0.06%

S&P 500 - Risers

American Airlines Group (AAL) $16.83 9.71%
United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $51.30 7.52%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $65.10 5.85%
Royal Caribbean Cr (RCL) $62.44 5.47%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $15.35 5.28%
Quanta Services Inc. (PWR) $147.81 5.06%
Carnival Corp. (CCL) $10.28 4.26%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $46.98 3.89%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $2.41 3.88%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $103.06 3.84%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $193.75 -5.05%
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) $16.33 -3.49%
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) $152.22 -3.15%
Quest Diagnostics (DGX) $148.13 -3.09%
McCormick & Co. (MKC) $80.97 -3.05%
AutoZone Inc. (AZO) $2,363.00 -2.89%
Republic Services Inc. (RSG) $123.27 -2.88%
Waste Management Inc. (WM) $152.71 -2.75%
PerkinElmer Inc. (PKI) $132.16 -2.49%
Waters Corp. (WAT) $335.70 -2.03%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

American Airlines Group (AAL) $16.83 9.71%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $1,024.31 9.34%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $65.10 5.85%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $11.28 5.72%
Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $103.06 3.84%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $165.11 3.19%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $136.71 2.87%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $121.59 2.70%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $36.00 2.53%
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $98.61 2.46%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $193.75 -5.05%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $182.96 -1.88%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $810.85 -1.77%
Cintas Corp. (CTAS) $446.23 -1.70%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $85.72 -1.69%
Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $100.04 -1.62%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $136.52 -1.51%
Hologic Inc. (HOLX) $79.87 -1.49%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $79.51 -1.38%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $57.27 -1.36%