Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen is due to make a speech on Friday which will be studied for clues as to the timing of the next U.S. interest rate rise.
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Data on Thursday showed an unexpected drop in jobless claims last week and a rise in new orders for manufactured capital goods in July, also suggesting that the economy was resilient enough to absorb a rate hike.
Wall Street was little changed on Thursday afternoon as a drop in consumer stocks was offset by gains in technology companies as well as financials after two more Federal Reserve officials said interest rates can be raised.
Six of the 10 major S&P 500 indexes were higher, with the biggest boost coming from the financial sector’s .SPSY 0.44 percent gain.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on April 29, 2015 in New York City.
“We’re in an information vacuum”, said Joseph Tanious, senior investment strategist at Bessemer Trust.
ASIA’S DAY: Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.3 percent to 16,555.95, while the Shanghai Composite index lost 0.6 percent to 3,068.33.
Health-care shares fell in Europe after political pressure to tamp down drug prices pushed biotechnology stocks lower Wednesday in the U.S. Celgene and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals each fell more than 1 percent as investors worry about a backlash in Washington against increases in prices that politicians say amount to price gouging.
Mylan MYL.O rose 2.3 percent to $44.16 after the drugmaker said it would reduce the out-of-pocket cost of its allergy treatment EpiPen.
One bright spot among consumer names was Tiffany, which rose 6.4 per cent to $73.28 as the best performer on the S&P 500 after the jeweler’s quarterly profit unexpectedly increased.
Results from other companies were disappointing. Signet Jewelers, the second-biggest decliner, fell $12.06, or almost 13 percent, to $83.44 after its results also missed estimates. That would be the fourth quarter in a row of drops, almost unheard of outside of a recession. Australia’s S&P ASXASX 0.14 % 200 fell 0.4% following recent declines in commodities prices. Brent crude, which is used to price oil internationally, edged 15 cents lower to $48.90 in London after falling 91 cents the day before.
US government bond prices slipped. The dollar rose to 100.57 yen from 100.49 yen, while the euro rose to $1.1281 from $1.1261.
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The December gold contract fell $5.10 to US$1,324.60 an ounce and September copper contracts were unchanged at US$2.08 a pound.
