Stock Market Today: Stocks open higher on big earnings, better retail sales todayheadline

Stocks opened higher on Thursday as strong earnings and better economic news cheered investors.

The earnings included record profits from Taiwan Semiconductor  (TSM) , the key fabricator of high-end semiconductors, raised guidance from GE Aerospace  (GE)  and decent profits from United Airlines  (UAL)  after Wednesday’s close and from soft-drink-and-snack giant PepsiCo  (PEP)  before the open.

In addition, retail sales in June, at least the first whack at the data, bounced back from May’s decline, and initial jobless claims fell to 221,000 from a revised 228,000 a week earlier.

The bottom line is that, so far, President Trump’s tariff ideas, which are not yet official, aren’t deterring many consumers. Trump early today proposed a standard tariff rate of 10% to 25%. 

At 9:50 a.m. EDT, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 16 points to 6,280. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 137 points to 44,393, and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 91 points to 20,822. 

Microsoft  (MSFT)  hit a new 52-week high of $509.37. Also hitting 52-week highs: Nvidia  (NVDA) , Broadcom  (AVGO) , and crypto giant Coinbase  (COIN) . Netflix  (NFLX) was due to report after the close.

Gold was down slightly at $3,222 per troy ounce. Crude oil was up slightly at $65.36 per barrel. The 10-year Treasury yield slipped tro 4.44%.