U.S. Stocks May See Initial Strength Following Mixed Economic Data

After pulling back well off their highs late in the previous session, stocks may move back to the upside in early trading on Thursday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.

The futures had been pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets but have risen following the release of a mixed batch of U.S. economic data.

While the Commerce Department released a report showing stronger than expected U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter, separate reports showed durable goods orders were unexpectedly flat in December as well as a notable rebound in weekly jobless claims.

Traders may shrug off the fourth quarter GDP data as old news and see the more recent economic data as optimistic about the likelihood of future interest rate cuts.

The Commerce Department released a report this morning showing the U.S. economy grew by much more than expected in the fourth quarter of 2023.

The report said gross domestic product shot up by 3.3 percent in the fourth quarter after surging by 4.9 percent in the third quarter. Economists had expected GDP to jump by 2.0 percent.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department also released a report showing new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods unexpectedly came in unchanged in the month of December.

The report said durable goods orders were virtually unchanged in December after surging by an upwardly revised 5.5 percent in November.

Economists had expected durable goods orders to jump by 1.1 percent compared to the 5.4 percent spike that had been reported for the previous month.

Excluding orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders increased by 0.6 percent in December after climbing by 0.5 percent in November. Ex-transportation orders were expected to inch up by 0.2 percent.

A separate report released by the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rebounded by more than expected in the week ended January 20th.

The…