synopsis

Notwithstanding the recent seven-session run, the S&P 500 Index ended April — a historically strong month — with a loss of 0.8%.

U.S. stock futures traded solidly higher overnight after equity markets ended Wednesday's session on a mixed note. 

Positive reactions to earnings reports from tech bellwethers Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) offered hope even as traders look ahead to a possible resolution of the tariff crisis.

As of 10:09 p.m. ET, the Nasdaq futures jumped 1.38%, and the S&P 500 futures added close to a percent, while the Dow and the Russell 2000 futures rose 0.54% and 0.23%, respectively.

After a string of data on Wednesday pointed to worsening economic conditions, investors are now focused on Thursday's initial jobless claims, April manufacturing activity readings from the S&P and Institute for Supply Management, and the Commerce Department's construction spending data for March.

On the earnings front, the spotlight is likely to be on reports from CVS Health (CVS), Eli Lilly (LLY), Hershey Foods (HSY), Harley-Davidson (HOG), McDonald's (MCD), Mastercard (MA), Roblox (RBLX), Sirius XM (SIRI), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), Roku (ROKU), and U.S. Steel (X).

The 10-year Treasury note yield edged up in overnight trading after it gained slightly on Wednesday as traders took stock of an inflation reading of the GDP report showing a sharp increase.

Crude oil futures traded flattish after three straight sessions of sharp declines, but gold futures fell sharply, extending the slide from Wednesday.

LPL Chief Equity Strategist Adam Turnquist said tariff uncertainty and monetary policy now have a far-reaching impact on the markets compared to other factors.

 The strategist said stocks have started to progress from a technical standpoint but cautioned that there is still a lot of damage to repair. 

"Leadership trends primarily remain risk-off, most S&P 500 stocks remain in some form of a downtrend, and institutional participation in the recovery has been underwhelming," he added.

Morgan Stanley CIO Lisa Shalett, however, has a different take. While noting that tariff volatility has eased somewhat, she said stagflation and U.S. debt concerns mean a new bull run may still be out of reach.

U.S. stocks closed Wednesday on a mixed note after being slightly in the red for the better part of the session. The lackluster sentiment followed the release of weak private payroll data and an unexpected first-quarter contraction.

Nevertheless, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrials Average extended their gains to seven straight sessions. Yet, the S&P 500 Index ended April — a historically strong month — a loss of 0.8%.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) exchange-traded fund (ETF) ended Wednesday's session up 0.04% at $554.54 and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) gained 0.28% to $406.34.

On the other hand, the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF edged down 0.01% to $475.47, and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) fell a steeper 0.63% before closing at $194,86.

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