US Markets
US Equities Extend Record Run Following Iran Deal Report
Wall Street's equity benchmarks extended their record advance following a report that the US and Iran have reached a tentative peace agreement, while traders parsed fresh macro data.The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9% to 26,917.5, while the S&P 500 added 0.6% to 7,563.6, both closing at record highs for a third day in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1% to 50,669, notching back-to-back record finish.Six of the 11 sectors ended in the red, led by utilities, while healthcare paced the gainers.The US and Iran have agreed to a memorandum of understanding to extend a ceasefire between the countries and begin talks on Tehran's nuclear program, Axios reported, citing sources. However, US President Donald Trump is yet to sign off on the deal, according to the report.Iran fired a ballistic missile toward Kuwait overnight, which was intercepted by Kuwaiti forces, US Central Command said on X.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.7% at $89.31 in Thursday late-afternoon trade, while Brent fell 0.3% to $94.03.In economic news, annual inflation hit the highest reading in almost three years in April even as consumer spending moderated in the face of high gasoline prices in the US, official data showed.Personal consumption expenditures data underscore the Federal Open Market Committee's "concern of elevated cost pressures permeating throughout the economy," Stifel Chief Economist Lindsey Piegza said in a report e-mailed to.The US economy expanded at a slower rate in the first quarter than previously estimated as consumer spending growth decelerated, the Bureau of Economic Analysis' second estimate showed"The downward revisions to consumer spending in (the first quarter) and the slowdown in April point to a consumer coming under stress, but not one that is about to buckle," Michael Pearce, chief US economist at Oxford Economics, said in remarks e-mailed to.Federal Reserve officials flagged the possibility of higher interest rates if the Middle East conflict dragged on and kept inflation above the 2% goal, according to minutes from the central bank's April meeting released last week.Markets widely expect the FOMC to keep interest rates unchanged at its next policy meeting in June, according to the CME FedWatch tool.Although artificial intelligence has the potential to be a "transformative technology," the risks of a miscalculation regarding its impact on inflation and productivity are "too great," St. Louis Federal Reserve President Alberto Musalem said."If the evidence becomes clear that higher productivity growth is likely to ease inflation pressures, I'm prepared to adjust my policy views," Musalem said. "However, at present, I believe we should keep our guard up against persistent above-target inflation today, rather than base monetary policy on the hope that we will have higher productivity growth tomorrow."US Treasury yields were lower, with the 10-year rate down 3.2 basis points at 4.46% and the two-year rate falling close to one basis point to 4.03%.In company news, Dollar Tree (DLTR) shares jumped nearly 18%, the best performer on the S&P 500, as the discount retailer raised its full-year earnings outlook after posting fiscal first-quarter results above Wall Street's estimates.Snowflake (SNOW) shares surged 36%. Late Wednesday, the cloud-based data platform raised its full-year product revenue outlook on the back of better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results. The company agreed to a $6 billion infrastructure spending deal with Amazon's (AMZN) cloud platform.Burlington Stores (BURL) increased its full-year outlook Thursday, while the off-price retailer's guidance for the ongoing quarter indicated a sequential slowdown in comparable sales growth. The company's shares slumped 7.9%.Gold was last up 1.9% at $4,530.70 per troy ounce, while silver advanced 1.3% to $75.87 per ounce.
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