Last Updated: 4:00PM EST
Stock indices finished today’s trading session in the green as investors cheered Nvidia’s (NVDA) Q4 results. Indeed, the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 3.01%, 2.11%, and 1.18%, respectively.
On Thursday, the National Association of Realtors released its U.S. Existing Home Sales report, which measures the change in sales of existing residential buildings during the previous month on an annualized basis. Existing home sales came in at 4 million for the month of January, above the expected 3.96 million. As a result, existing home sales increased month-over-month by 3.1% after a -0.8% decrease in December.
Furthermore, the Department of Labor released its Initial Jobless Claims report, which came in better than expected. In the past week, 201,000 people filed for unemployment insurance for the first time. Expectations were for 217,000 individuals.
In addition, Continuing Jobless Claims, which measures the number of unemployed people who qualify for unemployment insurance, came in at 1.862 million. This was below the forecast of 1.885 million and lower than last week’s print of 1.889 million.
First Published: 4:02AM EST
U.S. futures inched higher on Thursday morning following the release of Nvidia’s (NVDA) blowout fourth-quarter results. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are up by 1.93%, 1.13%, and 0.45%, respectively, at 3:21 a.m. EST, February 22.
Nvidia cheered investors by posting a remarkable 265% year-over-year increase in revenue attributable to strong demand for its artificial intelligence products. Moreover, the company provided strong Q1 revenue guidance, indicating another stellar year of growth. Following the release, several analysts remain bullish about NVDA stock and have raised their price targets.
However, traders got no respite from the recently disclosed minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) meeting held on January 30-31. The Fed indicated that its members are still apprehensive about implementing premature interest rate cuts. This cautious stance is attributed to ongoing concerns about inflation persisting above the central bank’s target.
In the meantime, the U.S. 10-year treasury yield was down at the time of writing, floating near 4.31%. Meanwhile, WTI crude oil futures trended up, hovering near $78.25 per barrel as of the last check on expectations of strong demand in the near term.
On the economic front, investors await the release of Initial Jobless Claims data for the week ended February 17 and Existing Home Sales data for January. Additionally, companies such as Pioneer Natural (PXD), Moderna (MRNA), Carvana (CVNA), Intuit (INTU), and Block (SQ) are slated to report earnings later today.
Elsewhere, European indices opened higher on Thursday as investors awaited the release of several corporate and economic reports. The Euro Zone’s preliminary services and manufacturing purchasing managers’ index data are expected to provide insights into current business activity levels within the region.
Asia-Pacific Markets End Higher on Thursday
Asia-Pacific indices ended today’s trading session in the green, buoyed by NVDA’s strong results.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.29%. Also, China’s Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component indexes ended higher by 1.27% and 0.76%, respectively. Furthermore, Japan’s Nikkei and Topix indices increased by 2.19% and 1.27%, respectively.
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