Wall Street ends higher, poised for another weekly advance ahead of inflation figures.

Wall Street closes with gains, signaling a potential weekly uptick as investors await inflation data. Stay tuned for insights into market movements and prepare for potential impacts on investments amid ongoing economic trends.

NEW YORK, May 10 (Reuters) - On Friday, U.S. stocks recorded small gains, contributing to another weekly advance across all three indexes. Investors analyzed remarks from Federal Reserve officials and anticipated upcoming inflation data. The S&P 500 and Dow saw slight increases, while the Nasdaq remained relatively stable. Overall, all three indexes experienced weekly growth, with the Dow achieving its most significant percentage gain from Friday to Friday since mid-December.

Chuck Carlson, CEO of Horizon Investment Services in Hammond, Indiana, noted that market participants are cautious ahead of next week's inflation data, with many refraining from significant investment moves. Additionally, he observed a trend of early exits on Fridays as people prepare for the weekend. Carlson highlighted the decline in Consumer Sentiment as a major concern, suggesting limited positive factors currently influencing market sentiment.

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic recognized indications of economic slowdown, though he emphasized uncertainty regarding the timing of rate cuts. Conversely, Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan adopted a more hawkish stance, questioning whether monetary policy is sufficiently restrictive to meet the central bank's 2% inflation target. Progress towards this goal will be revealed next week with the release of the Consumer and Producer Price Indexes (CPI and PPI) by the Labor Department.

Analysts anticipate that the upcoming CPI report will reveal a year-on-year core price increase of 3.6%, marking the lowest reading in over three years. Paul Nolte, Senior Wealth Advisor & Market Strategist at Murphy & Sylvest in Elmhurst, Illinois, emphasized the Federal Reserve's inclination towards rate cuts rather than hikes. He suggested that the current stance of "higher for longer" may persist unless there is a significant downturn in economic conditions.

The University of Michigan's initial assessment of May's Consumer Sentiment revealed a substantial decline, marking the most significant monthly drop since August 2021. Concurrently, expectations for both near- and long-term inflation intensified, reflecting growing concerns among American consumers.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) climbed 125.08 points, or 0.32%, reaching 39,512.84, while the S&P 500 (.SPX) rose by 8.6 points, or 0.16%, closing at 5,222.68. However, the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dipped by 5.40 points, or 0.03%, ending at 16,340.87. Consumer staples (.SPLRCS) saw notable gains, while consumer discretionary shares (.SPLRCD) lagged behind among the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500. With 77% of S&P 500 companies having reported their first-quarter earnings, 459 of them exceeded consensus expectations, as per LSEG data. Nvidia (NVDA.O) experienced a 1.3% increase following a nearly 60% surge in April sales reported by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (2330.TW), a significant Nvidia supplier. Novavax shares (NVAX.O) soared by 98.7% after securing a licensing deal with Sanofi (SASY.PA) valued up to $1.2 billion.

SoundHound AI (SOUN.O) surged by 7.2% after surpassing first-quarter revenue expectations. On the NYSE, declining issues slightly outnumbered advancing ones with a ratio of 1.10-to-1, while on Nasdaq, decliners were favored with a ratio of 1.59-to-1. The S&P 500 reached 58 new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 95 new highs and 105 new lows. Trading volume on U.S. exchanges totaled 9.47 billion shares, compared to the 10.87 billion average over the last 20 trading days.

Source: Reuters