WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Friday, with stocks poised to extend the lackluster performance seen throughout much of the week.
U.S. stocks closed mostly higher on Thursday after what turned out to be a somewhat lackluster session. Data showing an acceleration in producer prices and a drop in jobless claims suggested the economy is well and truly on the recovery track.
Among the major averages, the Dow and S&P 500 scaled new record highs. The Dow, which rose to 35,510.77, settled at 35,499.85, gaining 14.88 points or 0.04 percent. The S&P 500 ended up by 13.13 points or 0.3 percent at 4,460.83, slightly off a new high of 4,461.77.
The Nasdaq started off on a weak note, and after staying just above the flat line till more than an hour past noon, moved higher to settle at 14,816.26, gaining 51.13 points or 0.35 percent.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims edged down to 375,000 in the week ended August 7th, a decrease of 12,000 from the previous week's revised level of 387,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to dip to 375,000 from the 385,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department released a separate report showing U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in the month of July.
The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand surged up by 1.0 percent in July, matching the jump seen in the previous month. Economists had expected producer prices to climb by 0.6 percent.
With the bigger than expected monthly increase, the annual rate of growth in producer prices accelerated to 7.8 percent in July from 7.3 percent in June.
The year-over-year spike in producer prices reflected the largest advance since 12-month data were first calculated in November 2010.
Excluding prices for food, energy and trade services, core producer prices advanced by 0.9 percent in July after rising by 0.5 percent in June. Core prices were expected to show another 0.5 percent increase.
The annual rate of growth in core prices accelerated to 6.1 percent in July from 5.5 percent in June, showing the biggest increase since 12-month data were first calculated in August 2014.
Apple Inc. shares gained more than 2 percent. Microsoft and Telsa advanced by about 1 percent and 2 percent, respectively.
Walt Disney shares surged up more than 6 percent. Merck, Cisco Systems, Johnson & Johnson and United Health also closed on the positive side, albeit with less pronounced gains.
Commodity, Currency Markets
Crude oil futures are falling $0.27 to $68.82 a barrel after slipping $0.16 to $69.09 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after edging down $1.50 to $1,751.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $10.30 to $1,762.10 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 110.20 yen versus the 110.41 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1763 compared to yesterday's $1.1730.
Asia
Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday, with the spread of the delta variant coronavirus and China's regulatory curbs keeping underlying sentiment cautious.
The Chinese government has unveiled a five-year and 10-point plan outlining tighter regulation of much of its economy.
China's Shanghai Composite index dropped 8.44 points, or 0.24 percent, to 3,516.30 as the country expanded its regulation tightening exercise to the real estate sectors and the latest COVID-19 outbreak in the country forced the partial shutdown of Ningbo-Zhoushan port.
Investors also kept their eyes on upcoming industrial output and retail sales figures for July for fresh impulse.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended down 126.20 points, or 0.48 percent, at 26,391.62, with tech stocks declining after the Shanghai Stock Exchange said it would remove top chipmaker SMIC from an index of eligible Shanghai stocks under the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect.
Japanese shares ended slightly lower as chip-related stocks fell on concerns over demand. The Nikkei average slid 37.87 points, or 0.14 percent, to finish at 27,977.15, while the broader Topix index closed 0.15 percent higher at 1,956.39.
Tokyo Electron, Screen Holdings and Advantest lost 2-5 percent in the tech sector after the Philadelphia semiconductor index fell for a sixth straight session on Thursday. Toshiba gave up 4.4 percent despite the company returning to profit and maintaining its annual profit forecast.
Staffing firm Recruit Holdings soared 10 percent on its upbeat outlook. JFE Holdings surged 9.3 percent after the steelmaker nearly doubled its annual net profit forecast.
Australian markets hit a record high, with tech and healthcare stocks pacing the gainers ahead of corporate earnings from heavyweights due next week.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 40.70 points, or 0.54 percent, to 7,628.90 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 37.20 points, or 0.47 percent, at 7,897.70.
Biotech company CSL rallied 2.4 percent ahead of its earnings due next week, while Cochlear gained 1.5 percent and Resmed added 1 percent amid a resurgent U.S. dollar.
Tech stocks followed U.S. peers higher, with Wisetech Global climbing 3.2 percent. Westpac, which is due to release its Pillar 3 banking report next week, advanced 1.6 percent.
Miners ended broadly lower after iron ore futures skidded overnight on signs of economic slowdown in China.
Seoul stocks extended losses for a seventh straight session as chipmakers continued to come under heavy selling pressure on concerns of a fall in chip prices. The Kospi average tumbled 37.09 points, or 1.16 percent, to 3,171.29. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell as much as 3.4 percent.
In economic news, export prices in South Korea jumped 16.9 percent on year in July, the Bank of Korea said earlier today - accelerating from the 13.0 percent increase in June.
Europe
European stocks hit new highs on Friday and were on course for their fourth consecutive week of gains amid optimism over a strong earnings season and signs that U.S. inflation may have peaked.
The pan European Stoxx 600 was up 0.3 percent at 476.09 to hit a record high for the tenth straight session. The German DAX climbed 0.6 percent, France's CAC 40 index gained 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.3 percent.
Adidas rose more than 2 percent after it agreed to sell its underperforming Reebok business to Authentic Brands Group Inc. for up to 2.1 billion euros ($2.5 billion).
Zooplus jumped as much as 40 percent after U.S. private equity firm Hellman & Friedman offered to buy the online retailer of pet supplies for around 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion).
Deutsche EuroShop rallied 2.3 percent after the real estate investment company returned to profit in the second quarter.
Shares of Ipsen SA plunged nearly 12 percent after the pharmaceutical company announced the withdrawal of the New Drug Application for palovarotene following very recent discussions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The company said it plans to resubmit to the FDA upon completion of the additional data analysis.
Defense contractor Babcock jumped 6.6 percent after it agreed to sell its consultancy unit Frazer-Nash for 293 million pounds ($404.5 million) in cash.
Diversified miner BHP Group gained about 1 percent amid speculation it may announce a decision on exiting fossil fuels next week.
Technology company Avon Protection plunged 24 percent after cutting its revenue guidance for the next two years.
TotalEnergies, BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell were moving lower as oil prices dropped on fuel demand concerns.
In economic releases, German wholesale prices grew 11.3 percent on a yearly basis in July, following a 10.7 percent rise in June, Destatis reported. Prices have been rising since February 2021.
The latest rise was the biggest annual rate since October 1974, when prices were up 13.2 percent amid the first oil crisis.
French unemployment rate dropped marginally in the second quarter, data released by the statistical office Insee showed.
The ILO jobless rate dropped to 8 percent in the second quarter from 8.1 percent in the first quarter. The rate was forecast to fall to 7.9 percent.
U.S. Economic Reports
The Labor Department released a report on Friday showing U.S. import prices increased by less than expected in the month of July.
The report said import prices rose by 0.3 percent in July after surging up by a revised 1.1 percent in June. Economists had expected import prices to climb by 0.6 percent compared to the 1.0 percent jump originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said export prices shot up by 1.3 percent in July following a 1.2 percent leap in the previous month. Export prices were expected to increase by 0.8 percent.
At 10 am ET, the University of Michigan is scheduled to release its preliminary report on consumer sentiment in the month of August. The consumer sentiment index is expected to come in unchanged from the previous month at 81.2.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2021 AFX News
