Dow stocks hitting 52-week highs include IBM (IBM) 209.89 (+2.23%), Verizon (VZ) 43.80 (+0.34%) and Walmart (WMT) 78.84 (+0.04%). Dow stock 52-week lows include Boeing (BA) 161.33 (+0.79%) and Chevron (CVX) 137.88 (-0.25%).

The Market

Premarket today, the Dow was indicated to be up +51 points.

Wednesday the Dow closed up +124.75 (+0.31%) at 40,861.71.

Year-to-date the Dow is up +8.42%.

Wednesday, (18) Dow stocks were up, (2) made 52-week lows, and (3) made 52-week highs.

The Dow stock winners Wednesday were led by American Express (AXP) 254.18 (+3.57%), Intel (INTC) 19.64 (+3.48%) and AMazon (AMZN) 184.52 (+2.77%).

The Dow stock losers Wednesday were led by Travelers (TRV) 231.30 (-3.16%), Procter & Gamble (PG) 173.92 (-2.18%) and UnitedHealth (UNH) 589.75 (-1.55%).

The VIX closed Wednesday at 17.69 (-7.29%) and the 10 YR at 3.663 (+0.49%). The VIX is currently at 18.73 (-1.83%). The 10YR is at 3.677 (+1.07%).

The producer price index, which measures the average change in prices businesses receive for their goods and services, reflected a 0.2% rise in wholesale prices in August. That’s in line with expectations, as economists had anticipated a rise of 0.2% last month in the headline and core readings, up from 0.1% and 0.0% previously.

The European Central Bank on Thursday reduced interest rates by 25 basis points, marking the second time it has cut rates this year. The ECB’s key interest rate now stands at 3.5%, down from 3.75%.

McDonald’s (MCD) said Thursday it will extend its $5 value meal into December in most U.S. markets. It’s a part of the fast-food chain’s efforts to win back lower-income consumers, as the broader restaurant sector focuses on value this summer and diners cut back on restaurant spending amid persistent inflation. The value meal offers a McDouble or McChicken sandwich, small fries, four-piece chicken nuggets and a small soft drink for $5. McDonald’s shares hovered just below flat in premarket trading. The stock is down about 2.1% for the year but has jumped nearly +13.9% this quarter.

U.S. futures are mostly higher, European stocks are higher and Asian markets ended mostly higher.

The national average price of gasoline is down 1.1 cents at $3.253 per gallon.

Earnings Reports

Nike (NKE) reports earnings on 9/26/24 after the market close.

Today’s Featured Dow Stock

Boeing (BA)

Boeing (BA) 161.33 (+0.79%) is down -38.11% in 2024.

Financial Calendar

04:00 AM ET IEA Monthly Report
08:30 AM ET PPI ex. Food/Energy/Transport (MoM) (Aug), 0.3%
08:30 AM ET PPI ex. Food/Energy/Transport (YoY) (Aug), 3.3%
08:30 AM ET Continuing Jobless Claims, 1,850K, 1,838K
08:30 AM ET Core PPI (YoY) (Aug), 2.5%, 2.4%
08:30 AM ET Core PPI (MoM) (Aug), 0.2%, 0.0%
08:30 AM ET Initial Jobless Claims, 227K, 227K
08:30 AM ET Jobless Claims 4-Week Avg., 230.00K
08:30 AM ET PPI (MoM) (Aug), 0.1%, 0.1%
08:30 AM ET PPI (YoY) (Aug), 1.8%, 2.2%
10:30 AM ET Natural Gas Storage, 48B, 13B
11:00 AM ET Thomson Reuters IPSOS PCSI (Sep), 55.27
11:30 AM ET 4-Week Bill Auction, 5.080%
11:30 AM ET 8-Week Bill Auction, 5.040%
12:00 PM ET WASDE Report
13:00 PM ET 30-Year Bond Auction, 4.314%
14:00 PM ET Federal Budget Balance (Aug), -285.7B, -244.0B
16:30 PM ET Fed’s Balance Sheet, 7,113B
16:30 PM ET Reserve Balances with Federal Reserve Banks, 3.265T