news/AMZN/2023.02.15/S&P 500 ends higher after strong retail sales data.txt

(Updates with price moves after end of trading session)*Retail sales up 3% in Jan vs. est. of 1.8% rise*TSM slides as Berkshire Hathaway chops stake*Devon Energy drops on profit miss*Indexes: S&P 500 +0.28%, Nasdaq +0.92%, Dow +0.11%Feb 15 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended higher on Wednesday
after stronger-than-expected retail sales data offered evidence
of resilience in the U.S. economy, but gains were capped as
investors worried about more interest rate hikes by Federal
Reserve in the months ahead.A Commerce Department report showed retail sales surged 3%
in January as purchases of motor vehicles and other goods pushed
the number well past the 1.8% estimate from economists polled by
Reuters.On Tuesday, data showed U.S. consumer prices accelerated in
January, boosting expectations that the Fed will raise the
policy rate at least twice more this year to the 5-5.25% range."The good news from retail, and broadly from the stronger
economy, has been mostly priced in," said Ross Mayfield, an
investment strategist at Baird in Louisville, Kentucky. "At the
same time, that strength has taken market expectations of rate
cuts off the table and moved the terminal Fed funds rate a
little bit higher."Fueled by a rebound in growth stocks that were hammered in
last year's stock market downturn, the S&P 500 has
climbed 8% so far in 2023, while the Nasdaq has
recovered 15%. A better-than-expected quarterly earnings season
has provided cautious optimism.More than half of all S&P 500 companies have reported
quarterly earnings, and nearly 70% of those have topped profit
expectations, according to I/B/E/S data from Refinitiv. That
compares to a long-term average of 66%.Apple, Alphabet, Amazon and
Tesla rose between 1.4% and 2.4%, driving gains in the
S&P 500 and Nasdaq.The S&P 500 climbed 0.28% to end the session at 4,147.61
points.The Nasdaq gained 0.92% to 12,070.59 points, while Dow
Jones Industrial Average rose 0.11% to 34,128.05 points.Nine of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by a
1.2% gain in consumer discretionary.Roblox soared 26% after the gaming platform popular
with kids topped quarterly bookings estimates.U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co
(TSMC) fell 5.3% after Warren Buffett's Berkshire
Hathaway Inc slashed its stake in the chipmaker.Shares of Airbnb Inc rose over 13% after the
company posted forecast-beating results due to strong travel
demand.Devon Energy slumped about 10% after the shale oil
producer missed expectations for quarterly profit due to a hit
to production from severe cold weather in the United States and
higher expenses.After the bell, Roku surged 14% following a revenue
forecast that beat analysts' expectations.Across the U.S. stock market, advancing stocks
outnumbered falling ones by a 1.4-to-one ratio.The S&P 500 posted 19 new highs and no new lows; the
Nasdaq recorded 84 new highs and 55 new lows.Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively light, with 10.5
billion shares traded, compared to an average of 11.8 billion
shares over the previous 20 sessions.(Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru
and by Noel Randewich in Oakland, Calif., additional reporting
by Shristi Achar A; Editing by Savio D'Souza, Anil D'Silva and
David Gregorio)