(Reuters) – The New York Stock Exchange opened slightly higher on Thursday, as the publication of stronger-than-expected economic data did not dampen hopes of a pause in the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) rate hikes in September .

In early trading, the Dow Jones index gained 192.73 points, or 0.56%, to 34,768.26 points and the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 0.57% to 4,493.12 points.

The Nasdaq Composite takes 0.59%, or 81.95 points, to 13,895.53.

The report released by the US Labor Department on Thursday showed that producer prices (PPI) for final demand rose 0.7% in August, while analysts had expected a 0.4% rise. They also increased more than expected over one year, by 1.6% last month compared to an expected increase of 1.2%.

Retail sales also rose more than expected last month in the United States, while jobless claims for the week ending September 9 were lower than expected – 220,000 against a consensus of 225,000 – , indicating a tight labor market.

These data were all the more closely monitored as the Federal Reserve (Fed) must make its monetary policy decisions on September 20 and as underlying inflationary pressures in the United States appear to be easing, which is in line with a break in September.

“I still think we’ve seen the last rate hike, but there’s a small chance that November could still see another rate hike. I’d have to see more data to believe that now.” , notes Robert Pavlik, portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth.

In Europe, the European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday raised interest rates for the tenth time in a row, to their highest level since the creation of the euro in 1999, but signaled that this round of Monetary tightening was coming to an end.

In terms of values, HP fell by 4.2% after the sale by Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett’s group, of 5.5 million shares of the PC manufacturer.

The session will be marked by the debut of chip manufacturer Arm Holdings on the Nasdaq, which promises to be the largest IPO in the United States since the end of 2021.

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(Written by Diana Mandiá)

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