news/GOOG/2023.02.13/Wall Street ends higher as investors eye inflation data.txt

(Updates with end of trading session)*Meta climbs after report of more layoffs*Fidelity National slumps on payments business spinoff*Tech-related heavyweights drive S&P 500 gainsFeb 13 (Reuters) - Wall Street closed higher on Monday
as investors awaited inflation data likely to hint at the path
of the Federal Reserve's future interest rate hikes, while Meta
Platforms gained after a report that the Facebook parent was
planning fresh layoffs.Meta jumped after the Financial Times reported on
Sunday that the company was preparing to announce a new round of
job cuts, adding to layoffs last November.Microsoft, Nvidia, Apple and
Amazon also gained. Along with Meta, those tech-related
heavyweights contributed more than any other stocks to the S&P
500's gains for the session.Helping lift Microsoft, Stifel raised its price target on
the software company and said it is clearly looking to upend
Alphabet's Google search dominance through its integration with
ChatGPT.Investors are laser-focused on January inflation data due
on Tuesday to reassess their bets on the central bank's monetary
policy path.Wall Street's main indexes lost ground last week after
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that interest rates
may need to move higher than expected in the central bank's
battle against inflation."Today is just a natural reaction in the opposite direction
after we've seen very heavy selling pressure," said Keith
Buchanan, portfolio manager at GLOBALT Investments in Atlanta.According to preliminary data, the S&P 500
gained 46.50 points, or 1.15%, to end at 4,137.48 points,
while the Nasdaq Composite gained 174.12 points, or
1.49%, to 11,892.24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
rose 374.45 points, or 1.11%, to 34,243.72.So far in this year, the S&P 500 has gained about 8%,
and the index remains down about 14% from its record high close
in January 2022.Fidelity National Information Services Inc plunged
following the banking and payments processing conglomerate's
decision to spin off its merchant payments business.Coca-Cola rose ahead of its quarterly report due out
early on Tuesday.As U.S. quarterly earnings reports wind down, 69% of the S&P
500 firms that have reported results so far have exceeded profit
expectations, according to Refinitiv data. Analysts expect
December-quarter earnings to have fallen nearly 3% from a year
earlier.
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju
Samuel, Sriraj Kalluvila, Shinjini Ganguli and Deepa Babington)