Dow 0.04%, S&P 0.30%, Nasdaq 0.58% Updates to open; changes quote Sept 30 Reuters - Wall Street's main indexes rose on Thursday at the end of a bruising month as investors had a close watch on funding negotiations in Washington to prevent a government shutdown.
The benchmark S&P 500 was still on course to snap its seven-month winning streak due to worries about inflation, fallout from China Evergrande's potential default and the wrangling over the debt ceiling.
A report from the Commerce Department revised second-quarter growth to be slightly higher, while Labor Department data showed weekly jobless claims rose more than expected, showing that the job market remained under pressure.
While slower growth is a concern, it is encouraging to see a bit of a bump on GDP front. as investors wrap up the third quarter and look ahead, investors will likely need to remain nimble as the economic recovery continues in a zig zag way, said Mike Loewengart, managing director investment strategy at E TRADE Financial.
Five of the 11 major C&P sectors advanced in early trading, with technology the top gainer followed by healthcare and communication services.
The energy sector was the biggest loser, but has been headed for its best monthly performance since February. The S&P Financials sector was also tracking its sixth quarterly gain.
Still, excluding Netflix, the rate-sensitive FAANG stocks have lost a combined $415 billion in value this month after the Federal Reserve's hawkish move on monetary policy sparked a rally in Treasury yields and prompted investors to move into sectors that are likely to benefit most from an economic revival.
Netflix is set to add nearly 8% to Netflix in September.
While Fed officials seem more hawkish when it comes to interest rate hikes, a gradual movement to normalized rates would neither be bad for the economy nor the market, said Tom Mantione, managing director of UBS Private Wealth Management in Stamford, Connecticut.
ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 13.29 points or 0.04% to 34,404. 01, the S&P 500 was up 14,372 points, or 0.30%, at 13.12 points (of total) this morning. 58, and the Nasdaq Composite was up more than 83.65 points, or 0.58%, at 14,596. Perrigo Co jumped 11.8% after the drugmaker agreed to settle with Dublin taxes authorities over a 2018 issue by paying $1.90 billion in taxes.
It seems to have outnumbered the decliners by a 1.66 - to -1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.8 - to - 1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded three new 52 week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 19 new highs and 54 new lows.