US shares higher as focus stays on earnings, Fed talk
DJIA up 74.45 points (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - New York, 07 May - US shares were trading higher as investors pored over earnings and waited for more comments from Federal Reserve officials on the possible direction of interest rates.
Wall Street closed higher yesterday, buoyed by gains in the technology sector with the Dow in the green for the fourth straight session.
In a week light on data, investors are keeping a close eye on a string of events featuring Federal Reserve officials to get clues on where monetary policy may be heading in the coming months.
Yesterday, Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin reiterated the message the central bank wants to be more confident inflation is moving sustainably toward its 2% target before lowering rates. 'And given a strong labor market, we have time to gain that confidence," he said.
Last Friday's softer-than-expected jobs report buoyed market sentiment, fuelling two days of solid growth for stocks.
The earnings season meanwhile moves ahead with Lyft and Reddit due after the close.
Disney shares fell more than 9.4% after it said it expects weaker results in its streaming business in the current quarter. Palantir slumped 14.3% after it unveiled a disappointing outlook for annual sales while shares in Peloton jumped 11.8% after a report several private equity firms had circled for a possible buyout.
At 1838 GMT, the Dow Jones was up 74.45 points, or 0.19%, at 38,926.33 points.
The S&P 500 was 17.39 points, or 0.33%, higher at 5,197.93 points.
The Nasdaq was gaining 40.02 points, or 0.25%, at 16,388.78 points.
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(RADIOCOR) 07-05-24 19:42:58 (0841) 5 NNNN