U.S. markets shook off the malaise to end Thursday in the green after investors digested this week's Fed decision and ahead of the April jobs report.
The Dow and S&P each climbed nearly a percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.5 percent.
Leading the day's gains were a basket of tech and tech-adjacent stocks. Shares of Carvana, the online used-car retailer known for its "car vending machines," surged 34 percent after smashing earnings expectations. The company reported $3 billion in total revenue, a sharp 17 percent increase from the same quarter a year ago.
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It was just two years ago that Carvana stock was approaching zero and appeared on the verge of bankruptcy after a pandemic-era boom in sales. Since then, a major restructuring to focus on profitability over growth is now paying dividends.
The chipmaker Qualcomm also rose 10 percent after beating expectations on both sales and profit growth. And the online furniture retailer Wayfair ended the day up 16 percent after reporting a loss that was narrower than expected, largely thanks to a sharp reduction in headcount. The retailer remains unprofitable, but is growing its customer base.
Among the day's biggest losers were Etsy, which fell 15 percent after another dismal earnings report, and DoorDash, which sank 10 percent after reporting a weaker-than-expected outlook for the second quarter. Peloton also fell after it announced another round of layoffs and the departure of its CEO after just two years at the helm.
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Apple earnings were due after the bell Thursday. The iPhone maker has been struggling this year, with shares down 7 percent amid a slowdown in China. Investors will be looking for more clarity on how Apple is managing in China, where competition in the smartphone realm has grown fierce. The company could also give hints about the next iteration of the iPhone due later this year in what is expected to be a major upgrade to its core product.
Looking forward to Friday, unemployment data for April will be the main piece of economic data. The labor market is expected to continue to show resilience in the face of higher interest rates, with economists looking for a gain of about 250,000 jobs.
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Carlo Versano is a Newsweek editor based in New York, covering live and breaking news. He is an Emmy-winning journalist ... Read more
