US open: Stocks higher with Trump-Xi talks in focus

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the green early on Thursday as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite looked set to build upon yesterday's fresh record closes.

As of 1445 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.74% at 50,062.19, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.32% to 7,468.38 and the Nasdaq Composite came out of the gate 0.28% firmer at 26,476.85.

The Dow opened 368.99 points higher on Thursday, more than reversing losses recorded in the previous session following April's hotter-than-expected producer price index.

Chip stocks were in focus at the open on Thursday after the US cleared around ten Chinese companies to buy Nvidia's H200 artificial intelligence chips. However, no deliveries had yet been made as the deal remains caught between Washington's export controls and Beijing's efforts to reduce reliance on foreign technology. According to a report from Reuters, the Commerce Department has approved companies including Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance and JD.com to purchase Nvidia's H200 chips, the company's second-most powerful AI processor. Lenovo and Foxconn were also approved as distributors, the report said.

Separately, Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said the US was now able to engage China on artificial intelligence because it remains "in the lead", as Washington and Beijing agreed a protocol on best practices for the fast‑advancing technology. Speaking to CNBC during Donald Trump's two‑day meeting in Beijing with Chinese president Xi Jinping, Bessent said the two countries were preparing to formalise how they would manage AI risks and prevent sensitive models falling into the hands of non‑state actors. The remarks come as markets continue to track geopolitical tensions and the regulatory backdrop for AI - a sector that has been a major driver of US equity valuations in recent months.

Iran also featured prominently in Thursday's meeting between Trump and Xi Jinping, with both sides agreeing that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open.

On the macro front, Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at an accelerated pace in the week ended 9 May, according to the Labor Department, with initial claims jumping by 12,000 to 211,000 - above market expectations of 205,000. Continuing jobless claims also increased, rising by 24,000 to 1.78m, slightly below expectations of 1.79m, while the four-week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, increased by 750 to 203,750. Elsewhere, the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2% for the week ended 2 May, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week's downwardly revised rate.

Elsewhere, US retail sales rose 0.5% month‑on‑month in April, according to the Census Bureau, matching expectations but easing from a downwardly revised 1.6% increase in March. Sales jumped 2.8% at gasoline stations as fuel prices continued to climb amid the US and Israel's conflict with Iran. Excluding gas stations, retail sales were up 0.3%. The control group - which excludes food services, auto dealers, building materials and gasoline stations and feeds directly into GDP calculations - rose 0.5% in April, following a 0.8% gain in March and coming in slightly ahead of forecasts for a 0.4% increase.

Still to come, March business inventories figures will follow at 1500 BST.

In the corporate space, Cisco Systems rallied after the software firm posted better‑than‑expected third‑quarter results and announced plans to cut roughly 4,000 jobs, while buy now, pay later giant Klarna posted first‑quarter revenue and operating profits that came in ahead of expectations, with sales jumping 44% to $1bn on strong US growth, but disappointed markets with its current‑quarter revenue guidance of $960m to $1bn, while Yeti rallied on the back of stronger‑than‑expected first quarter numbers, with the group reporting adjusted earnings of $0.26 per share and an 8% rise in revenue to $380.4m, prompting it to hike the lower end of its full‑year guidance.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $101.87 3.15%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $230.42 2.75%

3M Co. (MMM) $147.10 2.72%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $298.87 2.02%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $336.45 1.70%

Boeing Co. (BA) $240.60 1.57%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $401.16 1.20%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $955.42 1.01%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $113.45 0.96%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $275.70 0.31%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $120.29 -5.22%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $165.84 -3.19%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $302.55 -2.55%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $214.64 -2.09%

Visa Inc. (V) $320.31 -1.87%

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $300.25 -1.52%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $47.21 -1.50%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $38.84 -1.50%

American Express Co. (AXP) $309.61 -1.50%

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $104.90 -1.19%

S&P 500 - Risers

Ford Motor Co. (F) $13.57 13.18%

CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $9.40 8.42%

Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $161.14 8.17%

eBay Inc. (EBAY) $113.01 6.40%

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) $32.07 6.16%

Ipg Photonics Corp. (IPGP) $106.60 4.93%

Borg Warner Inc. (BWA) $66.87 4.91%

Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $23.29 4.82%

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $306.34 4.51%

CME Group Inc. (CME) $297.13 4.45%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $32.56 -8.62%

Dxc Technology Company (DXC) $8.22 -7.64%

Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $49.26 -6.39%

DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $10.44 -6.20%

Jacobs Solutions Inc. (J) $107.27 -6.03%

Accenture Plc (ACN) $159.64 -5.97%

QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $213.17 -5.86%

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $45.97 -5.77%

LKQ Corporation (LKQ) $26.37 -5.72%

Gartner Inc. (IT) $144.46 -5.56%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

JD.com, Inc. (JD) $33.77 10.14%

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $150.50 7.09%

eBay Inc. (EBAY) $113.01 6.40%

Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $15.51 4.90%

Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $23.29 4.82%

Texas Instruments Inc (TXN) $306.34 4.51%

Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $402.62 4.39%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $803.63 4.12%

Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $399.04 4.06%

Biogen Inc (BIIB) $204.53 3.90%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.34 -13.49%

DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $10.44 -6.20%

QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $213.17 -5.86%

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $45.97 -5.77%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $120.29 -5.22%

Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $116.50 -4.41%

Intuit Inc. (INTU) $371.71 -4.35%

Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $89.92 -4.27%

Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $161.47 -3.50%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $143.06 -3.43%