news/AAPL/2023.02.23/Wall St ends topsy-turvy day higher, S&P snaps losing streak.txt

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock
markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)*Nvidia jumps on upbeat sales forecast*Netflix slips on price cuts report*Weekly jobless claims fall; GDP grows 2.7% in Q4Feb 23 (Reuters) -The main Wall Street benchmarks closed a topsy-turvy
Thursday in positive territory, with the S&P 500 snapping a
four-session losing streak, as investors grappled with how
interest rate policy might affect the U.S. economy.Stock markets have been volatile this year, pulling back in
February after a strong January as investors try to figure out
what the U.S. Federal Reserve will do with interest rates.
Hawkish comments from policymakers have been interspersed with
data pointing to a strong American economy.On Thursday, the Labor Department said the number of
Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits
unexpectedly fell last week, reflecting tight labor market
conditions.A separate report confirmed the economy grew solidly in the
fourth quarter, though rising inventory levels were responsible
for much of the increase.U.S. gross domestic product increased 2.7% in the fourth
quarter, according to the government's second estimate.
Economists were forecasting a 2.9% rise."If you're a bull, you can pull out plenty of things that
are supportive, and if you're bear there are plenty of things to
point to that are supportive," said Jack Janasiewicz, lead
portfolio strategist at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions."There are so many cross currents that are moving in
very different directions, I think it's very difficult to fall
back on one or two things. That's creating a lot of
hand-wringing uncertainty, and we're range-trading as a result
of it."For part of the day, the S&P was trading below its 50-day
moving average of 3,980 points, before rallying in the
afternoon.Influencing this intraday dip werelarge trades in short-dated derivativesthat piled selling pressure on the market, according to
Nomura strategist Charlie McElligott.Helping provide confidence to buyers was positive
earnings fromNvidia Corp, which surged after forecasting
quarterly sales above estimates and reporting a surge in the use
of its chips to power artificial intelligence services.Other chipmakers also gained, including Broadcom Inc
and Qualcomm Inc. The Philadelphia SE
Semiconductor index climbed.According to preliminary data, the S&P 500
gained 21.09 points, or 0.53%, to end at 4,012.14 points,
while the Nasdaq Composite gained 83.26 points, or
0.72%, to 11,590.33. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
rose 113.99 points, or 0.34%, to 33,159.08.Many of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors rose. Higher crude
prices pushed energy to be one of the biggest gainers on
the day, and also helped the index halt a losing run at seven.
This tied its worst stretch since an eight-session skid in March
2017.Among the fallers was communication services,
which recorded its fifth straight decline, matching another
five-loss streak in October. It was weighed by Netflix Inc
, which slipped on reports that the streaming service
was cutting subscription prices in 30 countries.Among other stocks, eBay Inc slid after warning of
dour demand in the first half of 2023 due to strained consumer
spending in the United States and Europe.Moderna Inc fell after the vaccine maker reaffirmed
its annual sales forecast of $5 billion for its COVID-19
vaccines despite its fourth-quarter sales exceeding estimates.However, Bumble Inc jumped. The owner of the
eponymous dating app projected annual revenue growth above
market estimates on optimism over rising paying users.
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru
and David French in New York; Editing by Savio D'Souza, Arun
Koyyur, Anil D'Silva and David Gregorio)