Major US stock market indices bounced back on Thursday, led by gains in technology shares that recovered from the previous session’s decline triggered by concerns over inflation and rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
As of 10 a.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 added 0.6%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 373 points or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.8% higher.
At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 53.3 points, or 0.11%, to 49,972.07. The S&P 500 rose 20.7 points, or 0.28%, to 7,287.67, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 140.3 points, or 0.56%, to 25,309.778.
Investor sentiment improved even as fresh economic data showed US wholesale inflation remained elevated. Producer prices increased 1.1% in May from the previous month, exceeding market expectations and pushing the annual rate to 6.5%, its highest level since November 2022.
Adding to concerns about the global economy, the World Bank lowered its 2026 growth forecast, warning that the ongoing conflict in the Middle East could further weaken economic activity. The institution said global growth may slow to 1.3% if disruptions to energy supplies intensify and trigger significant volatility in financial markets.
Despite the escalating conflict involving Iran, oil prices moved lower. The decline came even as hostilities continued to affect oil shipments through the Persian Gulf, a key route for global energy supplies.
US President , who earlier suggested that a peace agreement was within reach, struck a tougher tone on Thursday, pledging to target Iran’s critical oil infrastructure after both sides carried out fresh overnight attacks.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, dropped 1.1% to $92.08 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.6% to $89.52 a barrel.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.52% from 4.55% late on Wednesday.
Key Stock Movers
Chipmakers bounced back after Wednesday’s selloff, with Intel surging 10.4% and Applied Materials up 8%. Nvidia and Micron Technology gained 1.3% and 2.4%, respectively.
Oracle shares tumbled 13.7% after the software giant unveiled plans to raise about $40 billion through a combination of debt and equity financing over the next year. The fundraising initiative is aimed at supporting a massive expansion of the company’s artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Shares of Alphabet and Meta Platforms declined almost 2% each.
Stocks of Applovin and Atlassian fell about 3% each, while Servicenow, Salesforce and Adobe were down between 2.2% and 3%.
Navan stock rallied 16.5% after the corporate travel booking firm raised its annual forecasts for revenue and operating income.
Bullion
remained largely unchanged after slipping to their lowest level in six months on Thursday, as weaker-than-expected US labor market data helped counter concerns stemming from persistent inflation and growing expectations of further interest rate hikes ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week.
Fresh economic data showed that initial jobless claims in the United States climbed to 229,000 for the week ending June 6, indicating some softening in the labor market and providing support to bullion prices.
At 9:17 a.m. ET (1317 GMT), spot gold was steady at $4,076.88 per ounce. US gold futures for August delivery were down 0.9% at $4,097.10.
Among other metals, spot silver fell 0.3% to $63.52 per ounce, platinum gained 0.4% to $1,670.85 and palladium climbed 1.7% to $1,236.58.
“A weaker jobs market at this point would be supportive of gold prices,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.
But, “we saw inflation data both yesterday and today showing that inflationary pressures continue to rise; the potential for higher interest rates has been supporting the dollar and pressuring the gold market,” he added.