Financial stocks were higher Thursday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index rising 0.5% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) adding 0.6%.
The Philadelphia Housing Index was climbing 0.8%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was down 0.4%.
Bitcoin (BTC-USD) gained 2.6% to $81,414, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was decreasing 3 basis points to 4.45%.
In economic news, retail sales in April rose for the third straight month, with analysts saying the increase largely reflected higher prices as the war in Iran kept fuel costs elevated. Sales rose 0.5% in April following a revised 1.6% gain in March, the Census Bureau reported Thursday, matching the consensus in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.
In corporate news, Klarna (KLAR) shares jumped 15% after the company posted a narrower net loss and higher revenue for Q1.
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is launching a platform that enables investors to trade contracts across all three prediction market exchanges from a single platform. The clients can access the combined liquidity of ForecastEx, CME Group (CME), and Kalshi and receive the best available net price. Interactive Brokers shares rose 3.3%.
Blackstone (BX) owned data center operator AirTrunk is seeking a $2.3 billion syndicated loan to fund the development of its AirTrunk JHB2 facility in Malaysia's Johor state, Bloomberg reported. Blackstone shares added 2.3%.