Why U.S. Stocks Are Trading Higher After Rise In Jobless Claims

U.S. stocks traded higher this morning, following the release of data on initial jobless claims.

The Dow traded up 0.58% to 31,218.76 while the NASDAQ rose 1.16% to 11,493.10. The S&P also rose, gaining, 0.83% to 3,876.95.

Also check this: U.S. Trade Deficit Might Shrink This Much In May, Here's The Major Macro Issues For Thursday

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Energy shares rose by 3.4% on Thursday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Consumer Staples CPG, up 12% and Ring Energy, Inc. REI up 9%.

In trading on Thursday, consumer staples shares dipped by 0.2%.

Top Headline

U.S. initial jobless claims increased by 4,000 to 235,000 in the week ended July 2nd, compared to analysts’ estimates of 230,000.

The trade deficit, however, shrank by $1.1 billion to a five-month low level of $85.5 billion in May, versus analysts’ expectations of $84.9 billion. Exports from the US increased by 1.2%, while imports rose 0.6%.

Equities Trading UP

Grove Collaborative Holdings, Inc. GROV shares shot up 54% to $6.17 amid news the company's products will now be available in Kohl's KSS, Midwest-based Meijer and also Giant Eagle.

Shares of Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc. FFIE got a boost, shooting 34% to $6.10.

Longeveron Inc. LGVN shares were also up, gaining 17% to $7.12. Longeveron said an abstract regarding the Lomecel-B Phase 2a trial in Alzheimer's Disease has been accepted for presentation at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference.

Equities Trading DOWN

DiaMedica Therapeutics Inc. DMAC shares tumbled 41% to $1.20 after the company announced the FDA has placed a clinical hold on its Phase 2/3 ReMEDy2 trial for DM199.

Shares of USANA Health Sciences, Inc. USNA were down 15% to $65.25 after the company reported preliminary second-quarter results and updated its FY22 outlook. The company said it expects net sales of $1.015 billion- $1.065 billion, versus prior guidance of $1.1 billion - $1.2 billion. It also sees EPS of $3.85 - $4.45, compared to prior guidance of $5.00 - $5.70.

Clovis Oncology, Inc. CLVS was down, falling 9% to $1.98. Clovis Oncology recently had a Type A meeting with the FDA to discuss its plans for a supplemental marketing application for Rubraca (Rucaparib) as a first-line maintenance treatment in ovarian cancer. The FDA recommends that the company wait for more mature overall survival data to submit the application.

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Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 5% to $103.50, while gold traded up 0.7% to $1,748.00.

Silver traded up 1.4% to $19.42 on Thursday while copper rose 4.4% to $3.5625.

Euro zone

European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 climbed 1.9%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 1.3% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 2.2%. The German DAX gained 2%, French CAC 40 climbed 1.8% and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gained 2.9%.

Industrial production in Germany rose 0.2% month-over-month in May following a revised 1.3% rise in the previous month. The Halifax house price index in the UK climbed 13% year-over-year in June, while labor productivity in the country fell by 0.6% on quarter during the first three months of the year.

Economics

The trade deficit shrank by $1.1 billion to a five-month low level of $85.5 billion in May, versus analysts’ expectations of $84.9 billion. Exports from the US increased by 1.2%, while imports rose 0.6%.

U.S. initial jobless claims increased by 4,000 to 235,000 in the week ended July 2nd, compared to analysts’ estimates of 230,000.

The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories in the U.S. will be released at 11:00 a.m. ET.

The Treasury is set to auction 4-and 8-week bills at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard is set to speak at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller will speak at 1:00 p.m. ET.

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COVID-19 Update

The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 89,930,460 cases with around 1,044,550 deaths. India confirmed a total of at least 43,568,880 cases and 525,300 deaths, while Brazil reported over 32,687,680 COVID-19 cases with 672,820 deaths. In total, there were at least 557,774,720 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with more than 6,367,350 deaths.