US open: Stocks lower following CPI reading

dl exchange place wall st street pl new york city nyc ny nyse stock exchange dow jones sp nasdaq finance dollar dollars us usa united states of america — Exchange PlaceSharecast photo / Josh White

Wall Street stocks were in the red early on Thursday as investors monitored news that ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine had stalled and digested some key inflation data.

As of 1530 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.64% at 33,074.05, while the S&P 500 was 0.79% weaker at 4,244.22 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.27% softer at 13,087.56.

The Dow opened 212.20 points lower on Thursday, taking a bit out of gains recorded int the previous session as commodity prices eased back during the session.

Thursday's early moves came as oil prices advanced yet again as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to create volatility in markets. At the bell, West Texas Crude was up 0.54% at $109.29 after having dropped more than 12% in its worst day since November a day earlier, while international benchmark Brent crude oil was up 1.13% at $112.40 after tumbling 13% on Wednesday for its biggest one-day drop since April 2020.

Also in focus, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said no progress had been made in talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on achieving a 24-hour ceasefire, although talks in Turkey were said to be ongoing.

On the macro front, the cost of living in the US increased as expected last month despite a surge in energy prices. According to the Department of Labor, in seasonally adjusted terms, the Consumer Price Index jumped at a month-on-month pace of 0.8%, pushing the annual rate of increase four tenths of a percentage point higher to 7.9%. Core CPI, meanwhile, which excludes food and energy prices, increased by 0.5% on the month and 6.4% year-on-year.

Elsewhere, the number of Americans filing new unemployment claims jumped 11,000 to 227,000 in the week ended 5 March, up from an upwardly revised print of 216,000 in the previous weed and ahead of market expectations for a reading of 217,000.

According to the Labor Department, the four-week moving average printed at 231,250, an increase of 500 from the previous week's revised average, while the previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 230,500 to 230,750.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.1% for the week ended 26 February, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised reading.

Still to come, the Federal Reserve's quarterly financial accounts were slated for release at 1700 GMT and the White House's monthly budget statement will be out at 1900 GMT.

In the corporate space, Amazon shares were in focus after the online retail behemoth announced a 20-for-1 stock split and a $10.0bn buyback, while CrowdStrike rallied double digits after posting earnings overnight.

No major earnings were slated for release on Thursday.

Dow Jones - Risers

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $172.60 3.81%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $214.72 2.36%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $60.72 1.54%
Boeing Co. (BA) $180.84 1.27%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $140.55 0.78%
American Express Co. (AXP) $169.68 0.61%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $53.17 0.16%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $77.80 0.01%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $30.52 0.00%
Honeywell International Inc. (HON) $230.94 0.00%