Stock market today: Live updates

The bond market has recently seen signs of improvement, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury note yield recently giving back a chunk of its 2024 gains (yields move inversely to prices). However, these moves could be short lived, according to AmeriVet Securities’ Gregory Faranello.

“Dynamics have felt better to support the US Treasury market. But to be clear there’s been no definitive green light,” Faranello, the firm’s head of U.S. rates strategy, wrote in a note Thursday.

“Issuers remain extremely active, so more paper is hitting the market. Mortgage rates have come down but nothing demonstrative. The fiscal outlook in the United States hasn’t changed. And if you put the plethora of Fed speak in a blender before the holiday it’s been relatively consistent, in need of more data, and pointing toward ‘later this year.'”

“Let’s face it, the inflation data has softened short term. And to really get rates moving lower more aggressively it comes down to the employment market,” added Faranello.

— Fred Imbert 

Initial unemployment claims were higher than expected last week while housing and manufacturing data pointed to a slowdown, according to multiple economic reports released Thursday.

• First-time filings for jobless benefits totaled 238,000 for the week ended June 15, down 5,000 from the previous week but above the 235,000 Dow Jones estimate, according to the Labor Department. Continuing claims totaled 1.828 million, up 15,000.
• Housing starts in May totaled 1.277 million, a 5.5% decrease and below the 1.38 million estimate. Building permits totaled 1.386 million, a 3.8% decline from a month ago and short of the 1.45 million forecast.
• The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Manufacturing Index for June was at 1.3 in June, down from 4.5 in May and below the 5.0 estimate. Prices indexes rose while employment improved but was still negative.

—Jeff Cox

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:

• Accenture — The tech stock jumped 8.6%. While Accenture missed earnings and revenue expectations in its latest quarter, according to FactSet, the information technology company posted more than $900 million in new generative AI bookings.
• Trump Media & Technology Group — Shares tumbled nearly 12% after the company said Tuesday its registration of additional shares was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The stock is down 36% so far this month.
• Nvidia — The chipmaker rose more than 3%, extending gains from Tuesday when it surpassed Microsoft to become the most valuable public company.

Read the full list here.

— Sarah Min

Darden Restaurants ticked nearly 2% higher in Thursday premarket trading as investors parsed a mixed earnings report.

The restaurant chain stock earned $2.65 per share on an adjusted basis, modestly ahead of the $2.61 consensus forecast from analysts polled by LSEG. But revenue came in at $2.96 billion for the three-month period, just under Wall Street’s prediction of $2.97 billion.

Also of note, Olive Garden’s same-store sales declined for a second consecutive quarter.

Darden shares have slipped about 7.5% so far this year.

— Alex Harring, Amelia Lucas

The Bank of England kept interest rates steady at 5.25% even after inflation U.K. inflation eased to the central bank’s 2% target. Seven policymakers voted to hold rates at their current level, and two were in favor of a cut.

The announcement comes after Switzerland announced its second race cut earlier in the day, while the Federal Reserve on June 12 kept rates unchanged.

— Fred Imbert

Previously, two-thirds of economists surveyed by Reuters had predicted the move. Switzerland already has the second-lowest interest rate in the Group of Ten industrialized nations.

Analysts are now debating whether or not the Swiss National Bank could cut rates again for a third time in 2024.

— Lisa Kailai Han

European stocks opened marginally higher on Thursday, with investors looking ahead to policy rate decisions from central banks in the U.K., Switzerland and Norway.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 stood 0.1% higher shortly after the opening bell, with most sectors trading in positive territory.

— Sam Meredith

Wall Street is eyeing a collection of economic data beginning on Thursday to close out the second half of the trading week.

Initial jobless claims, housing starts and U.S. building permits are all due out at 8:30 am on Thursday, as well as the Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s manufacturing survey.

Friday morning will see services and manufacturing PMI data, followed by existing home sales figures.

— Brian Evans

Stock futures were little changed on Wednesday, as investors look to end the shortened trading week higher following the S&P 500’s latest record.

Futures tied to the S&P 500 ticked up 0.05%, while Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 0.2%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 41 points, or 0.2%

— Brian Evans