Opening Comment — Thursday, April 23, 2026
DJIA: 49,490.03, up 340.65
S&P 500: 7,137.90, up 73.89
NASDAQ: 24,657.57, up 397.61
Stocks lower ahead of PMI data
Stock futures are lower Thursday morning as markets await news from the U.S. and Iran on peace negotiation progress. Meanwhile, investors are looking forward to today’s preliminary reading of April purchasing managers’ indexes (PMIs), along with weekly jobless claims data. As of 7:20 AM ET, the Dow is decreasing 0.6%, while the S&P 500 is down 0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 is also falling 0.4% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Wednesday despite trade through the Strait of Hormuz remaining limited amid stalled U.S.–Iran peace talks. The Dow was up 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.6% and hit a new record closing level of 24657.57. The S&P 500 increased 1.1% and set a new record closing level of 7137.90, with seven of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Information Technology sector was the top performer, rising 2.3%, while the Real Estate sector was the bottom performer, falling 0.7%.
On the data front, the Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Chicago’s National Activity Index for March is expected to come in at -0.13, down from the prior month’s -0.11. Initial jobless claims for the week ending April 18 are expected to come in at 210,000, higher than the prior week’s 207,000, while continuing claims are expected to fall slightly to 1.816 million for the week ending April 11 from the prior week’s 1.818 million. The preliminary reading of S&P Global’s composite PMI for April is expected to come in at 50.6 versus the prior month’s 50.3, with the manufacturing and services PMIs forecasted at 52.5 and 50.6, respectively, compared to the prior month’s 52.3 and 49.8, respectively. The Kansas City Fed will release their Manufacturing Survey for April, with the composite index expected to come in at 10.0, down from the prior month’s 11.0.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly lower in mid-day trading as the eurozone’s and France’s preliminary April manufacturing PMIs unexpectedly rose to 52.2 and 52.8, respectively, and the services PMIs fell more than expected to 47.4 and 46.5, respectively. Meanwhile, the U.K.’s preliminary manufacturing and services PMIs unexpectedly increased to 53.6 and 52.0, respectively, while Germany’s manufacturing and services PMIs declined more than expected to 51.2 and 46.9, respectively. France’s manufacturing confidence rose in April.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly lower as Australia’s preliminary manufacturing, services, and composite PMIs for April rose to 51.0, 50.3, and 50.1, respectively. South Korea’s advance estimate of first-quarter gross domestic product came in stronger than expected, rising 1.7% quarter-over-quarter and 3.6% year-over-year. The Japanese preliminary manufacturing PMI for April increased to 54.9, while the composite and services PMIs fell to 52.4 and 51.2, respectively.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is higher as markets evaluate international PMI data and ahead of today’s U.S. PMI data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 1.6% higher at $94.46/barrel.
In the metals complex, gold is 1.0% lower at $4,692.63/ounce following a strengthening U.S. dollar.