[New York Stocks] Weekly Jobless Claims Stabilize, Indexes Open Higher... Nasdaq Falls on Weak Tech Stocks

Three Major Indexes Open Higher on Signs of Labor Market Stabilization
Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta Weaken
Focus Also on February 13 CPI Release

As weekly initial jobless claims in the United States showed signs of stabilizing last week, the three major New York stock indexes opened higher on the 12th (local time). Only the Nasdaq Composite, where large-cap stocks were weak in early trading, turned lower.

As of 10:31 a.m. on the New York Stock Exchange, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 179.13 points (+0.35%) from the previous session at 50,300.53. The large-cap S&P 500 Index was up 4.67 points (+0.06%) at 6,946.14, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was down 74.02 points (-0.32%) at 22,992.44.

Among the top stocks by market capitalization, weakness in big tech names listed on the Nasdaq stood out. Apple was down 1.41%, Microsoft 0.50%, Amazon.com 1.27%, and Meta 1.20%, ranking among the biggest decliners. In contrast, Nvidia was up 0.45%, TSMC 0.81%, Alphabet Class A 0.34%, Walmart 3.08%, and Eli Lilly 2.44%, posting notable gains.

Derek Holt, head of capital markets economics at Scotiabank, said, "We are seeing risk-on sentiment across global markets this morning," citing the stabilization of the U.S. labor market as the driver of the rally.

Before the market opened that day, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that initial claims for unemployment benefits for the week of February 1 to 7 (preliminary, seasonally adjusted) came in at 227,000, down 5,000 from the previous week.

The number of people filing for unemployment benefits for two weeks or more, known as continuing claims, rose by 21,000 from the previous week to 1,862,000. However, the four-week moving average fell to 1,846,750, the lowest level since October 2024.

Unemployment insurance claims are one of the key leading indicators of layoffs in the United States and are regarded as a real-time gauge of labor market conditions. Previously released January nonfarm payrolls exceeded expectations, and weekly initial jobless claims matched forecasts while continuing their downward trend.

Matthew Luzzetti, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV, "If you look at the recent jobless claims data, you can clearly see that weather has played a role over the past two weeks," adding, "Looking at the broader labor market now, the unemployment rate has fallen back to 4.3%, and the voluntary quit rate has barely moved over the past 12 to 18 months."

With employment indicators showing a solid trend, market attention has shifted to inflationary pressures. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is scheduled to be released on February 13.

Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors, said, "A lot of weight will be placed on the CPI," and analyzed, "If the CPI comes in lower than expected, at the very least the market will be able to understand that the Federal Reserve's policy efforts to ease inflation are progressing."