US: Wall Street indexes end rocky session higher ahead of Nvidia earnings
US stocks ended a choppy session higher on Wednesday, rebounding from recent losses as technology stocks rose ahead of Nvidia’s quarterly results.
Indexes briefly pared gains after minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting showed policymakers cautioned that lower borrowing costs could undermine the fight against inflation. The Fed cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point at each of its meetings in September and October.
Worries about a cooling labour market persisted ahead of Thursday’s release of the September US jobs report following the record-long US government shutdown.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics said it will not publish the October employment report, but will instead combine nonfarm payrolls for that month with November’s report.
Shares of Nvidia gained, with its earnings due after the market close seen as a test for the artificial intelligence-driven rally that has powered the market to record highs this year.
The stock is “almost guaranteed to be volatile,” following the report, said Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist at Ingalls & Snyder in New York.
“When you’re the biggest company out there, you’re sort of in the headlights, and it often does not make sense how the stock reacts in the short term,” he said.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 47.03 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 46,138.77, the S&P 500 gained 24.87 points, or 0.38 per cent, to 6,642.19 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 131.38 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 22,564.23.
Investors have worried about how companies will be able to make money from their huge investments in AI.
Options data from analytics firm Option Research & Technology Services (ORATS) showed an implied move of about 7 per cent for Nvidia’s stock in either direction after its results.
Among decliners, Target shares slipped after the retailer reported a bigger-than-expected drop in quarterly sales with cash-strapped US consumers pulling back on discretionary spending. REUTERS
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