Stock futures are fixed after S&P had the best day since March with big earnings

US stock index futures changed little during the night on Thursday, after the S&P 500 announced the best day since March with stronger earnings than expected.

Futures contracts related to the Dow Jones Industrial Average received 36 points. S&P 500 futures advanced 0.11%, while Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.12%.

During regular trading, the S&P 500 advanced 1.71%, recording its best day since March 5. Dov strengthened 1.55%, breaking a four-day losing streak. The 30-share benchmark had its best day since July 20th. The Nasdaq Composite strengthened 1.73% for its best day since May. All three averages are on their way to ending the week in green.

The profit comes in the middle of a strong start to the earning season. Eight members of the S&P 500 announced quarterly results on Thursday morning, and each exceeded Wall Street expectations. Among the names reported were the financially difficult Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup.

“Banks have created a strong and healthy image of consumers in the United States,” said Edward Moya, a senior market analyst at Oanda. “Wall Street cannot negatively affect the economy after seeing the issuance of reserves, moderate trading income, mixed credit growth and consumers willing to borrow,” he added.

Goldman Sachs, JB Hunt and PNC Financial are among the names that will report quarterly results on Friday.

Better-than-expected job readings also boosted the mood on Thursday. Weekly claims for the unemployed in the previous week amounted to 293,000, the Ministry of Labor announced, which is the first time that the reading is below 300,000 since the beginning of the pandemic.

Thursday’s gains came despite hot inflation readings, which some have warned could hamper the economic recovery. The consumer price index jumped 0.4% in September and 5.4% compared to last year, according to the Ministry of Labor.

“One thing that is clear is that inflation has been persistently higher than expected over the summer, and the Fed is starting to notice that,” said Charlie Ripley, a senior investment strategist at Allianz Investment Management.

“Higher inflation makes it harder for the Fed to ignore, and some market participants have questioned the ‘transient’ view of inflation … we believe higher inflation is forcing the Fed to bring its exit strategy out of a high level of monetary stimulus,” he added.

In terms of economic data, retail sales numbers will be released Friday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, while a reading of the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment will hit the tape at 10 a.m. Eastern Time.