In this file photo people walk past the New York Stock Exchange and a statue of George Washington at Wall Street on March 23, 2021 in New York City. — AFP picNEW YORK, May 25 — Wall Street stocks were mostly higher early today, adding to the prior session’s momentum as optimism over the reopening economy offset concerns about inflation.
Analysts pointed to a pullback in the yield on the 10-year US Treasury note as an indicator that inflation worries may be ebbing. Anxiety that a jump in inflation could spark a sudden shift in Federal Reserve policy has weighed on the market in recent weeks. Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare characterised the sentiment as a “tentative calm,” adding that “we’re still at base camp for a few more months, where high inflation prints can be rationalised on the basis of low base effects.”The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.1 per cent at 4,201.12, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.4 per cent t to 13,714.38.
Among individual companies, Moderna rose 4.2 per cent after the drugmaker said trials had shown its Covid-19 vaccine is “highly effective” in adolescents aged 12-17, and the company would seek regulators’ approval in June. Lordstown Motors tumbled 14.4 per cent as the electric truck startup warned it would need to raise additional capital to meet its production targets. — AFP