U.S. Stocks Open Higher as Investors Try to Keep Winning Streak Alive

© Reuters.

By Liz Moyer

AiVIF.com -- U.S. stocks opened higher, heading for the S&P 500's fourth-straight week of gains as investor expectations about the economy brightened.

At 9:39 AM ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 146 points, or 0.4%, while the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite were both up 0.5%.

If the S&P does end positive for the week, it would be its longest stretch of gains since last November. The Dow is also up for the week so far, as is the Nasdaq, which has climbed out of bear market territory.

The better than expected inflation report earlier this week, showing the pace of price increases cooled from June to July, is boosting sentiment that the Federal Reserve won’t have to raise interest rates as aggressively as it has at its last two meetings. 

If inflation has peaked, as the thinking goes, the Fed’s chances of guiding the economy to a “soft landing,” or a recovery without large job losses, improve.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary consumer sentiment reading for August, due out later this morning, could shed more light on what households are thinking about the economy. Big retail earnings from Walmart (NYSE:WMT) and Target (NYSE:TGT) are also on tap in the coming days.

Shares of Illumina Inc (NASDAQ:ILMN) fell 11% after the gene sequencing company reported lower than expected profit and revenue and issued a disappointing outlook, citing the challenging economic environment.

Shares of restaurant software maker Olo Inc (NYSE:OLO) tumbled 27% after a disappointing quarter and full-year revenue outlook.

Oil fell. Crude Oil WTI Futures was down 2.3%, to $92.13 a barrel, while Brent Oil Futures crude was down 1.9%, to $97.61 a barrel. Gold Futures rose 0.2%, to $1,810 an ounce.