US stocks rise after data show December inflation slowed in line with expectations

• US stocks rose following December inflation data showing a prices largely easing in the final month of 2022.
• Stock futures were volatile after the report which showed month over month prices falling 0.1%.

US stocks rose Thursday as investors assessed a slowdown in inflation in December against the Federal Reserve's stance to keep raising interest rates to pull consumer prices down even further.

Stock futures were volatile following the release of the final CPI report for 2022. Thursday's session will determine whether the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite will be able to extend gains into a fourth consecutive day.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 9:30 a.m. opening bell on Thursday:

• S&P 500: 3,981.38, up 0.3%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 34,063.83, up 0.27% (90.82 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 10,957.98, up 0.3%

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said December headline inflation fell 0.1% month over month. That met a consensus estimate from a Bloomberg survey of economists. The headline rate was still hot at 6.5% year over year but lower than 7.1% in November.

Meanwhile, the core rate that strips out energy and food prices rose 0.3%, meeting expectations but it was slightly higher than 0.2% in November.

US headline inflation at 6.5% marks a significant move downward, said Oliver Rust, head of product at Truflation, an independent data aggregator, in a note. But "it will cause some doubt and uncertainty," he said.

"There seems to be a consensus building that the federal funds rate will not need to go above 5.25% to curb inflation," he said. "A tight labor market is going to keep the pressure on to raise rates, though, and with economic data remaining mixed, the coming months will reveal whether the US can truly avoid a recession."

Weekly jobless claims, also released early Thursday, fell by 1,000 to 205,000, indicating continued strength in the labor market.

Here's what else is happening today:

• Coinbase's rating was downgraded further into junk territory by S&P Global Ratings, which said the crypto exchange is facing a profit hit.
• The US Justice Department is investigating two brothers behind a solana stablecoin exchange that reportedly used 11 fake identities to triple-count deposits.
• FTX's bankruptcy judge has scrapped the failed crypto exchange's $135 million deal to sponsor the Miami Heat's home arena.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.8% to $78.79 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, leapt 1.6% to $83.95.
• Gold gained 1.2% to $1,902.20 per ounce.
• The 10-year Treasury yield fell 12 basis points to 3.75%.
• Bitcoin edged up 0.2% to $16,830.09.