Stock Market Today: Stocks higher as inflation worries test tech-led rally

Updated at 4:23 PM by Rob Lenihan

Stocks ended higher Friday, with the Nasdaq reaching a record closer, as Wall Street put economic worries on hold to focus on big tech.

The Nasdaq rose 1.1% to finish at 16,920.79, while the S&P 500 rose 0.7%, closing at 5,304.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 4.3 points, or 0.01%, to end at 39,069.59.

Tech companies had a good day, with Nvidia, Intel, Advanced Micro Devices and NXP Semiconductors among those closing the session on an up note.

For the week, S&P 500 inched up just 0.03%, according to CNBC, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.41%, and the Dow lost 2.33%, marking its first negative week in five.

Updated at 11:28 AM EDT

Building gains

Stocks are extending their early advance, with the S&P 500 now up 41 points, or 0.78%, on the session and the Dow clawing back around 125 points from yesterday's wipeout.

The Nasdaq, meanwhile, jumped 186 points, or 1.12%, and sits just 77 points from the 17,000 mark.

Earlier data from the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow forecasting tool showed the economy growing a 3.5% clip, down only slightly from its prior 3.6% estimate.

The Commerce Department will publish its second estimate of first quarter growth on May 30.

Updated at 10:05 AM EDT

Feeling better

The University of Michigan's benchmark consumer sentiment survey showed Americas were modestly more optimistic about their financial situation this month, and see easing inflation pressures over the coming year.

The headline index was pegged at 69.6 points, up from the original estimate of 68.8 points, while the year-ahead inflation forecast eased to 3.3% from 3.5%.

Updated at 9:50 AM EDT

Solid start

The S&P 500 was marked 16 points, or 0.3% higher in the opening minutes of trading, with the gaining just under 40 points.

The tech-focused Nasdaq, meanwhile, rose 53 points, or 0.32%, with Nvidia extending its record run yesterday with a 0.1% advance.

Updated at 9:27 AM EDT

Heavily weighted

Eli Lilly  (LLY)  shares, one of the market's top-performing names with a value that is now $200 billion higher than Tesla, is set to make a big investment to boost the supply of its blockbuster weight-loss treatments.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Eli Lilly will spend another $5.3 billion, taking its total commitment to $9 billion, to accelerate the production of Zepbound and Mounjaro at a developing facility in Lebanon, Indiana.

Eli Lilly shares were marked 0.44% higher in premarket trading to indicate an opening bell price of $812 each, a move that would extend its 2024 gain to around 37%.

Updated at 8:36 AM EDT 

Still Durable

U.S. durable goods orders powered higher in April, rising 0.7% against a consensus forecast of a 0.8% decline, suggesting the pace of manufacturing activity carried solid momentum into the second quarter.

The better-than-expected reading added more upward pressure to Treasury bond yields, with benchmark 10-year note yields 7 basis points higher on the week at 4.491% and 2-year notes pegged at 4.946%.

Stock Market Today

Stocks ended firmly lower Thursday as those pressures, which were underscored by a stronger-than-expected economic activity report from S&P Global, weighed on the chances of an autumn Federal Reserve rate cut.

S&P Global's PMI survey for the month of May showed the strongest level of overall business activity in more than two years, but also noted a subcomponent of prices paid by wholesalers jumped to the highest level in 18 months.

Set against a surprise, albeit modest, decline in weekly jobless claims data, which was also published Thursday, and traders quickly shifted focus from Nvidia's  (NVDA)  blowout first quarter earnings to the odds of a September rate cut.

The CME Group's FedWatch now pegs those at just 54%, down from around 72% a month ago, and suggests investors are betting only one rate cut between now and the end of the year.

Benchmark 10-year note yields jumped to 4.475% in the overnight session, while 2-year notes were pegged at 4.925%, little-changed from their Thursday closing levels.

Related: Analysts overhaul Nvidia stock price targets as earnings address key problem

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six global currencies, is on pace for its strongest weekly gain since April, but was last marked 0.21% lower at 104.892.

Heading into the start of the trading day on Wall Street, Nvidia shares remain the most active name in premarket trading, rising 0.2% from last night's record high to indicate an opening bell price of $1,040.16 each.

Tesla  (TSLA)  shares were also on the move, rising 0.24%, even as reports suggest big Model Y output cuts at is Shanghai gigafactory over the past two months.

Boeing  (BA)  shares, which lead the Dow to a 605 point decline Thursday with a 7.55% slump after CFO Brian West said the group would generate negative cash flow this year, edged 0.8% higher.

For the broader indices, futures tied to the S&P 500, which remains 10.44% higher for the year, are priced for an 11 point opening bell gain while those linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average suggest a 25 point advance.

The Nasdaq, which is up 6.9% for the month, is priced for a 35 point gain on the back of gains for Nvidia, Tesla and Advanced Micro Devices  (AMD) .

More Wall Street Analysts:

• Analyst unveils new Nike price target ahead of big summer for sports

• Analysts weigh in on Google-parent Alphabet’s stock after cloud event

• Analysts revamp Disney stock price target after proxy fight

In overseas markets, Europe's Stoxx 600 in on pace for a weekly decline, and was last marked 0.46% lower in Frankfurt, following solid economic data from Germany that could potentially delay European Central Bank rate cuts.

Britain's FTSE 100, meanwhile, slipped 0.4% as investors focused on the early campaigning for general elections that are slated for July 4.

Overnight in Asia, the Nikkei 225 extended its weekly decline with a 1.17% slump following inflation data that showed prices pressures remain stubbornly above the Bank of Japan's 2% target.

The region-wide MSCI ex-Japan index, meanwhile, was marked 0.92% lower into the close of trading.

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