US STOCKS-Wall St rises on gains in banks, strong retail sales data
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* Walmart (WMT) slides after cutting earnings forecast
* April retail sales rise in-line with estimates
* Indexes up: Dow 0.91%, S&P 1.23%, Nasdaq 1.60% (Updates to open; adds comment)
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Nine of the 11 major S&P sectors advanced in morning trade, with financials up 2.3% and technology 1.8%.
Microsoft Corp (MSFT), Apple Inc (AAPL), Tesla Inc (TSLA) and Nvidia Corp (NVDA) gained between 1.4% and 4%, providing the biggest boost to the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
Banks jumped 3.5%, with Citigroup (C) climbing 7%
after
U.S. retail sales increased strongly in April as consumers bought motor vehicles amid an improvement in supply and frequented restaurants, providing a powerful boost to the economy at the start of the second quarter.
"Retail sales is one of the core data points that the Fed
will look at as it thinks about how aggressive (it needs) to be
to rein in inflation," said
"It should allay some of those (recession) concerns on the basis that it is a positive signal on the trajectory and potential health of the U.S. economy further into 2022."
Fed Chair
At
However, rising costs weighed on Dow component Walmart Inc (WMT) , which fell 8.6% after the retail giant cut its annual profit forecast, signaling a bigger hit to margins.
Shares of rival retailers Costco, Target (TGT), Dollar Tree (DLTR) slipped between 0.6% and 2.2%.
Home Depot Inc (HD) added 1.9% after raising its full-year sales forecast on firm demand for home improvement tools and building materials.
United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) rose 6.1% after the carrier lifted its current-quarter revenue forecast, boosting shares of Delta Air, American Airlines (AAL) and Spirit Airlines (SAVE).
A positive first-quarter earnings season has been
overshadowed by worries about the
The S&P 500 is down nearly 2% and the Nasdaq 3.9% so far in May, largely hit by declines in growth stocks.
U.S.-listed Chinese stocks jumped on hopes that
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 4.05-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 3.95-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded one new 52-week highs and 29 new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 18 new highs and 100 new lows.
(Reporting by