PARIS (Reuters) – The New York Stock Exchange opened higher on Thursday, supported by the solid results of several large groups such as Meta Platforms, Eli Lilly and Comcast, which took precedence over the day’s data showing a slowdown in growth of the American economy.

In early trading, the Dow Jones index gained 124.2 points, or 0.37%, to 33,426.07 points and the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 0.67% to 4,083.4 points.

The Nasdaq Composite takes 0.97%, or 115.17 points, to 11,969.52.

An hour before the opening of Wall Street, the US Department of Commerce reported that GDP growth slowed more than expected in the first quarter of 2023, to 1.1% according to the first estimate, against 2.0% expected by the Reuters Consensus.

However, this indicator does not yet raise major concerns among investors who seem to continue to bet on the scenario of a soft landing for the US economy despite a 475 basis point hike in interest rates from the Fed. since March 2022.

“Looking ahead, the data seems to continue to show weakening. The good news is that we think a recession could be moderate,” said Brian Klimke, chief investment officer at Cetera Investment Management.

On the corporate results side, Meta Platforms jumped 14.05% after reporting on Wednesday quarterly sales up for the first time in nearly a year and a revenue forecast for the April-June period. above expectations. The title has taken 74% since the start of the year, the second best performance of the S&P-500 behind Nvidia (+0.48%).

Comcast advanced 4.60% on sustained demand for its broadband services and increased attendance at its theme parks.

In health, Eli Lilly rose 4.33% thanks to the increase in its annual profit forecast, while Merck & Co gained 0.1% after better than expected first quarter results.

Caterpillar, on the other hand, lost 4.52% despite quarterly results that exceeded Wall Street expectations. Some analysts believe demand may have plateaued.

(Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)

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