U.S. stocks are rising as investors try to break losing streak

By Liz Moyer

Investing.com -- U.S. stocks were rising on Thursday as investors tried to shrug off recession worries that have dragged the indexes down for several days.

At 10:46 ET (15:46 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 272 points or 0.8%, while the S&P 500 was up 0.9%, and the NASDAQ Composite was up 1.3%.

A 5-day slump in the S&P was fueled by new fears that the Federal Reserve's actions to raise interest rates will ultimately tip the economy into a recession.

First-time jobless claims last week met expectations for 230,000. That comes after November's job report showed the economy added more jobs than expected, a still-tight labor market that the Fed has been monitoring closely.

Employers have also increased wages for workers. Investors interpret that to mean the inflationary pressures are still around and that the Fed is going to keep rates higher for longer as it tries to tame inflation.

On Friday, the data releases include producer prices and the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment reading.

The Fed starts its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday and will release its decision on Wednesday, with expectations that it will raise rates again, but by a smaller half-percentage point increment.

Shares of network equipment maker Ciena Corp. (NYSE:CIEN) jumped 19% after it beat expectations for revenue and profit and said it sees an opportunity for outsized revenue growth in 2023. GameStop (NYSE:GME) shares rose 8% after it reported a drop in third quarter sales amid a turnaround effort.

Oil was mixed. Crude Oil WTI Futures was up 0.2% to $72.11 a barrel, while Brent Oil Futures fell 0.7% to $76.61 a barrel. Gold Futures was up 0.3% to $1802.