US stocks climb after GDP report shows faster-than-expected economic growth

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US stocks climb after GDP report shows faster-than-expected economic growth
A trader works on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange.Andrew Kelly/Reuters
  • The S&P 500 was on course to rise Thursday after two sessions of losses.
  • Stocks moved higher after data showed the US economy grew by 6.9% in the fourth quarter.
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US stocks rose Thursday, putting the S&P 500 on track for its first win in three sessions, with the market recovering from the Federal Reserve's signal that it's set to aggressively raise interest rates and finding support from the US economy's display of strength in the face of the Omicron outbreak.

Wall Street's major benchmarks extended gains after the Commerce Department said the world's largest economy grew at an annualized rate of 6.9% through the fourth quarter of last year. That rate was well above the 5.5% median forecast from economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The data also showed growth accelerating from the 2.3% rate in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, weekly initial jobless claims fell by 30, 000 to 260,000, with each report suggesting the economy has been holding up relatively well with the new wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Here's where US indexes stood at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday:

Stocks dropped on Wednesday after Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated that a rate hike at every meeting this year is not off the table with inflation risks to the upside.

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Around markets, legendary investor Jeremy Grantham warns of a "superbubble" and predicts stocks will crash.

Oil prices rose. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 0.8% to $88.01 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, gained 0.7%, at $88.32.

Gold fell 1.4% to $1,804.30 per ounce. The 10-year yield lost nearly 3 basis points, at 1.843%.

Bitcoin rose by 3.2% to $38,125.82 after sliding on hawkish Fed comments.

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