The New York Stock Exchange operates during normal business hours in the Financial District, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021, in the Manhattan borough of New York. Stocks are moving broadly higher in early trading on Wall Street as the market builds momentum a day after breaking a three-day losing streak. The S&P 500 added 0.9% early Thursday, Oct. 14, putting the benchmark index into the green for the week. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
By Damian J. Troise and Alex Veiga
Technology companies powered a broad rally for stocks on Wall Street Thursday, lifting the S&P 500 to its biggest gain since March.
The benchmark index rose 1.7% a day after breaking a three-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.6% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 1.7%.
More than 90% of stocks within the S&P 500 gained ground. Apple and Microsoft were among the big gainers in the technology sector, each rising more than 2%.
Financial and health care stocks also did well. JPMorgan Chase rose 1.5%. UnitedHealth Group rose 4.2% after the health insurer raised its profit forecast for the year following a strong third quarter.
The market's gains came as investors welcomed another batch of encouraging quarterly report cards from several companies. Every S&P 500 company that reported earnings so far this week has exceeded Wall Street's forecasts.
“It’s not surprising that the market has reacted pretty well to that," said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading & derivatives at Charles Schwab.
The S&P 500 rose 74.46 points to 4,438.26. It's now on pace for a weekly gain. The Dow climbed 534.75 points to 34,912.56. The Nasdaq added 251.79 points to 14,823.43.
Small company stocks also notched gains. The Russell 2000 index rose 32.21 points, or 1.4%, to 2,274.18.
This is the first big week for companies reporting their most recent quarterly financial results. Investors have had mixed reactions so far to the latest round of bank earnings. Bank of America rose 4.5% Thursday after beating analysts' forecasts. Wells Fargo also beat forecasts, but it fell 1.6% as profits from lending fell compared with a year ago.
Investors were also reviewing the latest data on jobs and inflation as they try to gauge the economy's health and path forward.
The Labor Department said the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week fell to its lowest level since the pandemic began. It's a positive sign for a job market that is still trying to recover from the initial hit from the pandemic 18 months ago. A surge of cases over the summer stunted the recovery.
The latest report on inflation showed that businesses continue to face pressure from rising costs. The Labor Department said inflation at the wholesale level rose 8.6% in September compared to a year ago, the largest advance since the 12-month change was first calculated in 2010.
The report came a day after the government said inflation at the consumer level rose 5.4% in September from a year ago, matching the highest rate since 2008.
The market largely took the inflation reports in stride, which suggests investors may be feeling more at ease since the Federal Reserve has signaled it may begin to taper the unprecedented financial support it has been giving the economy since the early days of the pandemic and eventually begin raising its benchmark interest rate in order to combat rising inflation.
“The market is a lot more concerned about inflation than it is about interest rates going up,” Frederick said. “At this point, yes, inflation is high, but the Fed seems like its ready to raise rates to control it and the market seems to be comfortable with that."
Rising inflation has been raising costs for consumer goods. Analysts are concerned that could affect how much people spend and slow down the economic recovery. Investors will get an update on spending Friday when the Commerce Department reports retail sales for September.
Bond yields edged lower. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 1.52% from 1.55% late Wednesday.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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