Major indexes surged just before the market close on Thursday after inflation data met expectations, and a Fed official discussed potential rate cuts for the year. Additionally, the House passed a bill to extend funding for certain agencies, preventing a government shutdown.
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released the Personal Income and Outlays price index for January, which rose in line with expectations. The core inflation price index also met expectations. The CME FedWatch Tool shows a high probability of rates staying the same in March, with a decreasing likelihood of a rate cut in May and June.
Lawmakers voted on a funding bill to avoid a government shutdown, while initial jobless claims rose higher than expected. Pending home sales fell sharply in January.
On the stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained flat, the S&P 500 rose, and the Nasdaq experienced gains. Small caps also performed well. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note yield fell, while the Innovator IBD 50 ETF increased.
Dow Jones stocks like Salesforce and Boeing were among the movers, along with Intel, Walt Disney, and Amazon.com. Outside the Dow, Snowflake, C3.ai, Nutanix, Duolingo, and Pure Storage all had notable movements based on earnings reports. Retailer Best Buy, Zscaler, Veeva, Granite Construction, and Celsius Holdings also saw changes in their stock prices.
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