US open: Dow and S&P edge higher on Greece momentum despite mixed data

US equities edged higher on Thursday feeding off the momentum generated by European equities after Greece's parliament approved austerity measures in return for financial aid.

Just after 1500 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 31 points to 18,081.57, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained 13 and 41 points respectively.

Greece boost

European shares pushed higher on Thursday as investors welcomed news that Greek lawmakers have approved the austerity measures needed for Athens to enter formal negotiations over its third bailout.

The plan will now need to be approved by the Eurozone members, with Germany's Bundestag set to vote on Friday, while the French national assembly has already voted in favour.

“With the debate about debt restructuring well and truly opened, with the Greek government in chaos and with implementation of the terms of the bailout far harder than agreeing to them in Parliament, the uncertainty which can weaken the euro won’t go away any time soon," analysts at Societe Generale said in a note.

"Secondly, all of this uncertainty will require the ECB to maintain super-easy policies for even longer than was the case already.”

Mario Draghi, the ECB president, said he remained confident Greece would pay its debt on 20 July, as he announced the decision to increase ELA to Greek banks by €900m over the next week,

Despite the rally among European equities, the euro lost 0.39% against the dollar, which gained 0.15% against the pound. The greenback was flat against the yen, while gold futures dropped 0.29% to $1,144.10 an ounce.

Elsewhere, Asian stocks closed mostly up, while oil prices staged a solid rebound, with West Texas Intermediate gaining 0.57% to $51.70 a barrel and Brent rising 1.18% to $57.73 a barrel.

Earnings in focus

In company news, tobacco giant Philip Morris climbed 2.02% after posting better-than-expected second quarter profit and sales early on Thursday.

Netflix surged 11.2% after analysts at JP Morgan, Cantor Fitzgerald and Pacific Crest raised their target price on the stock.

The internet TV network said late Wednesday it added a better-than-expected 3.28m streaming subscribers in the June quarter.

Tech giant Intel climbed 0.67% despite announcing late Wednesday that its second-quarter profit fell 3.2% to amid an ongoing slump in the personal-computer market.

Goldman Sachs shed 0.55% after posting a sharp decline in second quarter earnings as it took a hit from weaker revenue and litigation costs, while Citigroup rose 2.67% after posting better-than-expected results.

eBay rose 3.97% despite reporting earlier on Thursday that profit plunged in the second quarter despite a moderate rise in revenues.

The earnings season continues with Google, Mattel, Schlumberger and Advanced Micro Devices set to report after the close.

Thursday data

Unemployment claims fell by 15,000 in the week ending on 11 July to reach 281,000, according to the Department of Labour, falling below the reading of 290.000 analysts had expected. The four-week moving average increased by 3,250 to hit 282,500.

The Philadelphia Fed index dropped to 5.7 in July from 15.2 in June, well below forecast of a 12.5 reading.

However, there was more positive news from the homebuilding sector, as a gauge of confidence among home builders remained at 60 in July, the strongest reading since late 2005, according to National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo data

Meanwhile, Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen will speak to the Senate Banking Committee on economy and monetary policy at 1930 BST, but analysts do not expect any surprises after her testimony before Congress on Wednesday.

"On Wednesday, Yellen yet again reiterated that we will see a hike this year, but also emphasised the importance of the size and speed of a hike rather than its timing," said Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG.

"Ultimately, monetary tightening will always seem like walking on eggshells, and I expect it to be slow-paced and moderate in size regardless of whether it starts in September or later this year."