The Dow reached an intra-day high of 40,000 for the first time on Thursday, but it ended lower after paring earlier gains. The benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq also pared earlier gains in choppy trading and finished lower.
But Canada’s main stock index still managed to end higher for a second straight day, as investors cheered corporate earnings, including from Canada Goose.
The blue-chip Dow index has recovered from its October 2022 lows, powered by resilient U.S. economic growth despite steep rate hikes by the Fed.
Investors are now betting on two quarter-point interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year, and money markets are placing a 70% chance of the first reduction in September.
All three Wall Street indexes had reached record closes on Wednesday after data showed a smaller-than-expected rise in consumer prices in April, indicating that inflation had resumed its downward trend.
Data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week, with labour market conditions remaining fairly tight even as job growth is cooling.
“The more information you get out there shows there’s slowing inflation and yet employment is holding up, this has really put a floor or even ignited this rally that we’ve seen in the past couple of days,” said Silas Myers, chief executive and portfolio manager at Mar Vista Investment Partners in Los Angeles.
Ten out of 11 S&P 500 sectors closed lower, with stocks in consumer staples the only gainer.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 38.62 points, or 0.10%, to 39,869.38, the S&P 500 lost 11.05 points, or 0.21%, to 5,297.10 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 44.07 points, or 0.26%, to 16,698.32.
The S&P/TSX composite index ended up 15.07 points, or 0.1%, at 22,299.83, edging closer to the record closing high it posted last Thursday at 22,375.83.
Canada Goose Holdings Inc shares surged 15.5%, as the luxury apparel group beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter results, riding on a recovery in North America and steady demand in China for its pricey puffer jackets.
Lightspeed Commerce Inc was also a standout. Its shares gained 18.3% as the cloud commerce solution provider beat first-quarter revenue estimates.
Heavily-weighted financials added 0.1% and utilities was up 0.4%. The materials sector was a drag, falling 0.2%, as gold and copper prices fell.
Energy ended nearly unchanged as oil settled 0.8% higher at US$79.23 a barrel.
Upcoming earnings reports from Canada’s big banks, set to begin on May 23, could be the next catalyst for the TSX.
On Wall Street, Walmart rose nearly 7% after the retail giant raised its fiscal 2025 sales and profit forecast, betting on easing inflation to further boost demand for essentials.
Deere dropped 4.7% after the farm equipment maker trimmed its annual profit forecast for the second time.
U.S.-listed shares of Swiss insurer Chubb gained 4.7% after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway revealed a US$6.7 billion stake in the company.
GameStop and AMC Entertainment slid 30% and 15%, respectively, with the so-called “meme stocks” extending Wednesday’s losses following a two-day rally sparked by the social media return of “Roaring Kitty” Keith Gill.
About 17.6 billion shares changed hands across U.S. exchanges, compared with the average of about 11.5 billion shares over the last 20 sessions. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.2-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 1,965 stocks rose and 2,301 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.17-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 64 new 52-week highs and one new low while the Nasdaq recorded 188 new highs and 58 new lows.
Reuters, Globe staff
Be smart with your money. Get the latest investing insights delivered right to your inbox three times a week, with the Globe Investor newsletter. Sign up today.