Investing.com — U.S. stocks rose Thursday, bouncing after the previous session’s sharp retreat, helped by falling Treasury yields and a healthy outlook from chipmaker Micron.
By 09:35 ET (14:35 GMT), the was up 295 points, or 0.8%, traded 30 points, or 0.7%, higher and climbed 145 points, or 1%.
All three averages are on course for strong gains in December as well as this year amid growing optimism that the Federal Reserve will authorise interest rate cuts in the new year.
Falling yields boost confidence
Helping the tone Thursday has been a fall in U.S. yields, with the benchmark falling to a seven-month low of 3.847% overnight, as bets that the Fed will move to slash rates from over two-decade highs in the spring continue to grow.
According to Investing.com’s
Fed Rate Monitor Tool
, there is a more than 68% chance that the Fed will lower borrowing costs by 25 basis points as early as March.
Philadelphia Federal Reserve President added to those expectations on Wednesday, as he signaled an openness to lowering short-term borrowing costs.
“It’s important that we start to move rates down,” he said in an interview, adding that “we don’t have to do it too fast, we’re not going to do it right away, it’s going to take some time.”
Micron offers confident outlook
Adding to the positive outlook was a healthy outlook from Micron Technology (NASDAQ:), with the chipmaker’s stock rising pver 8% after forecasting quarterly revenue above market estimates on Wednesday, on signs of memory chip recovery in 2024 after one of the most significant downturns in years.
Micron’s results are closely watched, as it usually reports ahead of companies that report numbers in January, and its memory products can be a signal for demand in other semiconductor markets.
Elsewhere, quarterly results are scheduled from Nike (NYSE:) after the close, and its outlook will be studied for news of consumer demand in the vital holiday season.
Warner Bros Discovery (NASDAQ:) and Paramount Global (NASDAQ:) have discussed a potential tie-up, according to reports, that would bring together two of the world’s largest media companies/
U.S. third-quarter GDP revised lower
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose just marginally last week, while the government confirmed that economic growth accelerated in the third quarter, suggesting underlying strength in the economy as the year winds down.
increased at a 4.9% annualized rate last quarter, revised down from the previously reported 5.2% pace, the fastest pace of expansion since the fourth quarter of 2021. The economy grew at a 2.1% pace in the second quarter.
However, of most interest will be the , the Fed’s favorite measure of inflation, on Friday, which could show whether inflation has slowed enough for the Fed to begin easing policy next year.
Oil prices fall after crude stockpiles rise
Oil prices retreated Thursday following a surprise increase in inventories and with U.S. production climbing to record levels.
By 09:35 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 1.3% lower at $73.25 a barrel, while the contract dropped 1.3% to $78.64 a barrel.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration announced on Wednesday that U.S. rose by 2.9 million barrels last week, compared with expectations for a 2.3 million barrel drop, raising concerns about demand at the world’s largest consumer.
EIA also said U.S. crude output rose to a record 13.3 million barrels per day last week, up from the prior all-time high of 13.2 million barrels.
Crude prices climbed sharply this week as shipping operators announced plans to avoid the Suez Canal as a result of attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi group on vessels in the Red Sea, potentially disrupting oil supplies to the important Asian market.
Additionally, rose 0.4% to $2,056.35/oz, while traded 0.5% higher at 1.0998.
