Stock futures are climbed on Friday morning as investors looked toward the end of a week that has ushered in a recovery rally.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 59 points, or 0.15%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures both climbed by 0.2% and 0.4% respectively.
Those moves come after a strong day on Wall Street. The Dow gained more than 500 points on Thursday, rising more than 1% along with the broad S&P 500. The Nasdaq Composite jumped more than 2% as technology shares led the ascent.
Thursday marked the sixth straight winning day for both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. With respective gains of more than 3% and 5% on the week, both are on track to notch their biggest weekly gains since November. The Dow has climbed more than 2% this week, which would also mark its best performance this year.
Retail sales data released Thursday came in much stronger than economists expected, while weekly jobless claims fell. Both offered evidence that recession fears, which helped spark a global sell-off earlier this month, were overblown.
These stats came after inflation readings released earlier this week bolstered hopes that a soft landing scenario was still possible. These data points also supported the expectation that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates at its next policy meeting.
“Investors have been looking for additional reasons to continue the road to recovery,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research. “With the recent, better-than-expected economic and employment data, now investors are picking up the pace.”
Europe stocks open higher
Stoxx 600 index.
European stock markets opened higher Friday, adding to weekly gains of more than 2% to date.
Germany’s DAX rose 0.28% as France’s CAC 40 was 0.15% higher, though the U.K.’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.15%.
— Jenni Reid
Stocks head for winning week
The three major indexes are pacing to finish the week notably higher with just Friday’s trading session left.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have added more than 3% and 5%, respectively, on the week. Both are on track to notch their best weekly performances since November. It would also snap four-week losing streaks for each.
The Dow has advanced more than 2%, on pace for its best week since December.
— Alex Harring
See the stocks moving after hours
These are some of the stocks moving in extended trading:
- H&R Block — The tax services stock climbed more than 8% after announcing a 17% dividend increase and $1.5 billion buyback.
- Autodesk — The design technology provider slid nearly 3% after Bloomberg reported that executives continued utilizing a sales strategy despite saying it would stop. The company also ignored risks related to the practice, according to Bloomberg’s report.
— Alex Harring
Stock futures are little changed
Dow and S&P 500 futures both sat near flat shortly after 6 p.m. ET Thursday night. Nasdaq 100 futures shed about 0.1%.
— Alex Harring