US open: S&P 500 hits new record high as traders digest CPI reading

Wall Street stocks traded higher at the open on Thursday as market participants thumbed over a consumer price index that revealed a bigger-than-expected increase in price pressures and a fresh batch of jobless claims data.

As of 1525 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.53% at 34,630.77, while the S&P 500 was 0.57% firmer at 4,243.56 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.72% stronger at 14,011.89.

The Dow opened 183.63 points higher on Thursday, reversing losses recorded in the previous session, and the S&P 500 rallied to a new record.

The morning's primary focus was the monthly consumer price index, which revealed inflation in the US bounded ahead in May with big gains evident across nearly all categories of products and services. According to the Department of Labor, headline consumer prices jumped at a month-on-month pace of 0.6%, pushing the annual rate of increase from 4.2% for April to 5.0%. Economists had forecast CPI to rise by 0.4% on the month and 4.6% on the year.

In addition to the CPI reading, the number of Americans lining up for state unemployment benefits declined for a sixth consecutive week, with initial claims decreasing by 9,000 to 376,000 in the week ended 5 June, according to the Labor Department. Significantly, continuing claims for ongoing state unemployment dropped 258,000 in the week ended 29 May to 3.5m - the largest decline since mid-March.

In the corporate space, UPS stock ticked up at the bell following an upgrade from analysts at JPMorgan, while shares in reopening plays Boeing and Delta Air Lines also flew higher after the open.

So-called "meme stock" GameStop fell around 9% in early trading after tapping former Amazon exec Matt Furlong for CEO and revealing that sales had surged 25% last quarter.

Still to come on the macro front, the federal government will publish its monthly budget statement at 1900 BST.