Wall St climbs as strong earnings offset Amazon drag

US stock indexes have edged higher after strong earnings updates from Exxon and Intel mitigated the impact of Amazon’s slowdown warning, while economic data bolstered expectations that the Federal Reserve would hike interest rates next week.

Exxon Mobil Corp rose 2.4 per cent to hit an all-time high as the energy major reported a record first-quarter profit on rising oil and gas output.

Chipmaker Intel Corp gained 6.1 per cent after it said gross margins will improve in the second half of the year.

Amazon.com Inc fell 3.5 per cent as the company signaled its cloud growth would slow further, overshadowing its better-than-expected quarterly results.

“We are seeing a general dialing back of spending by businesses. So the lack of growth that we’re seeing from some of the technology companies is not necessarily a surprise,” said Paul Nolte, market strategist at Murphy & Sylvest Wealth Management.

The benchmark S&P 500 was set for a second consecutive monthly gain on stronger-than-expected earnings from megacap companies including Alphabet Inc, Microsoft Corp and Meta Platforms Inc.

Analysts expect first-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies to fall 2.4 per cent year-over-year compared with a 5.1 per cent fall expected at the start of April.

Data earlier showed US consumer spending was unchanged in March, while underlying inflation pressures remained strong, keeping the Fed on course to hike interest rates by 25 basis points next week, a move largely priced in by investors.

“The consensus is that the Fed will raise rates at their meeting next week,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth.

“That likely remains in place and hasn’t really budged with this data. The only discrepancy between consensus estimates and the Fed right now seems to lie in when and if they may cut rates.”

Data on Thursday showed US economic growth slowed more than expected in the first quarter, while plunging consumer confidence in April heightened the risk that the economy could fall into a recession this year.

Later on Friday, the US central bank will publish its internal review of its supervision of Silicon Valley Bank, whose failure set off a broader loss of investor confidence in the banking sector.

In early trading on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 133.00 points, or 0.39 per cent, at 33,959.16, the S&P 500 was up 19.37 points, or 0.47 per cent, at 4,154.72, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 41.27 points, or 0.34 per cent, at 12,183.51.

The S&P energy index rose 1.2 per cent to lead sectoral gains, boosted by Exxon results.

Shares in First Republic Bank were flat as US officials coordinate talks to rescue the beleaguered lender, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

Snapchat-owner Snap Inc dived 18.3 per cent as it warned next quarter results could miss Wall Street targets, while Pinterest Inc dropped 16.6 per cent after the image-sharing platform forecast second-quarter revenue growth below estimates.

Cloudflare Inc tumbled 24.4 per cent on a downbeat revenue forecast from the cloud services provider.

Colgate-Palmolive Co inched up 3.6 per cent after the toothpaste maker lifted its annual organic sales forecast betting on consistent price hikes.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.01-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 2.01-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 19 new 52-week highs and no new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 35 new highs and 66 new lows.