US open: Stocks trade higher as traders hope for progress on trade talks

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the green early on Thursday as traders hoped for further updates on possible trade talks between the White House and Beijing.

As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.51% at 39,809.49, while the S&P advanced 1.18% to 5,439.46 and the Nasdaq Composite came out of the gate 1.71% firmer at 16,993.31.

The Dow opened 202.92 points higher on Thursday, extending gains recorded in the previous session (419.59) after Donald Trump revealed he did not intend to try to oust "major loser" Jerome Powell from his role as Federal Reserve chairman and that he would play "very nice" with China.

Stocks traded higher in the previous session on hopes that trade tensions between the US and China were cooling, with Trump vowing to take a less confrontational stance toward Beijing and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying the US had the "opportunity for a big deal" on trade.

While major indices all traded higher at the open, Dow futures initally headed south before the open on Thursday after China said overnight that there were no trade talks taking place with the US, and that "all sayings" regarding progress between the two nations should be disregarded. He also stated that in order for any talks to commence, the Trump administration would have to cancel all "unilateral" tariffs.

On the macro front, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at an accelerated pace in the week ended 19 April, according to the Department of Labor. Initial jobless claims rose by 6,000 to 222,000 last week, in line with market expectations, while continuing claims unexpectedly fell by 37,000 to a two-month low of 1.84m. The four-week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, decreased by 750 to 220,250.

Elsewhere, the Chicago Federal Reserve's national activity index fell to -0.03 in March, down from +0.24 in February, indicating that regional growth was weaker than the long-term average. Two of the four broad categories of indicators decreased month-on-month, while three categories made negative contributions.

On another note, durable goods orders in the States surged in March as Boeing ramped up its production cadence. According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, total durable goods orders surged at a month-on-month pace of 9.2% to $315.729bn. However, excluding those from the transportation sector, orders were roughly flat at $191.12bn. Orders for transportation equipment were ahead by 27.0%, with those for autos and parts up by 2.3% to $63.94bn and those for commercial aircraft by 139% to $44.64bn. Orders for capital goods excluding aircraft and defence jumped by 29.4% to $114.95bn.

Finally, existing home sales fell by more than expected in March, according to the National Association of Realtors, dropping 5.6% month-on-month to a seasonally adjusted annualised rate of 4.02m despite a slight pullback in benchmark borrowing costs in the period.

In the corporate space, PepsiCo's Q1 earnings missed Wall Street estimates on Thursday, even as its revenue performance topped projections. The soft drink giant also lowered its FY forecast for core constant currency earnings per share as a result of new tariffs, economic volatility and a more cautious consumer.

Alphabet and Intel were slated to report earnings after the close.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $260.98 4.19%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $21.16 2.94%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $89.32 2.33%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $301.73 2.02%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $382.07 1.32%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $535.24 1.12%

3M Co. (MMM) $137.18 0.82%

Nike Inc. (NKE) $57.78 0.68%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $137.57 0.65%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $358.08 0.46%

Dow Jones - Fallers

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $231.95 -5.51%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $158.40 -4.42%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $77.48 -1.60%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $278.77 -1.42%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $55.96 -1.15%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $154.34 -0.67%

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $257.54 -0.59%

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $10.99 -0.41%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $317.43 -0.33%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $426.70 -0.29%

S&P 500 - Risers

Hasbro Inc (HAS) $60.52 11.30%

Allegion (ALLE) $137.88 9.03%

Resmed Inc. (RMD) $232.96 8.63%

Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $45.94 7.46%

United Rentals Inc. (URI) $627.86 6.56%

FMC Technologies Inc. (FTI) $26.63 6.37%

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW) $74.83 6.20%

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $161.28 5.84%

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $70.57 5.49%

Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $194.54 4.52%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $182.45 -15.96%

LKQ Corporation (LKQ) $37.40 -12.62%

Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) $41.30 -10.43%

Robert Half Inc. (RHI) $41.79 -10.03%

Tractor Supply Company (TSCO) $47.95 -7.29%

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $67.97 -5.98%

Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (WTW) $308.91 -5.67%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $231.95 -5.51%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $9.40 -5.33%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $33.17 -4.77%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Hasbro Inc (HAS) $60.52 11.30%

Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $45.94 7.46%

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $161.28 5.84%

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $70.57 5.49%

Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $194.54 4.52%

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $257.73 3.64%

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $1,078.89 3.61%

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $219.60 3.20%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $683.00 3.16%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $21.16 2.94%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Fiserv Inc. (FI) $182.45 -15.96%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $9.40 -5.33%

JD.com, Inc. (JD) $32.38 -5.29%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $33.17 -4.77%

Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $154.72 -4.64%

Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $81.18 -3.66%

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.15 -3.65%

O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $1,347.21 -3.42%

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $130.54 -3.31%

CSX Corp. (CSX) $27.74 -2.19%