Stock market today: Stocks rally ahead of big April jobs report

• Stocks closed higher on Thursday ahead of Apple earnings and the April jobs report. 
• Economists predict 240,000 job gains for April, a slowdown from 303,000 in March. 
• Bank of America’s Savita Subramanian said the stock market has more room to run even without a rate cut.

US indexes closed higher on Thursday ahead of Apple’s earnings and a key labor report set to be published Friday morning. 

Major averages edged up on Thursday, halting the two-day decline as mega-cap tech equities led the way while Treasury yields dipped.

Nvidia spearheaded the rebound with nearly a 3% increase, while Microsoft gained roughly nearly 1%. Investors are bracing for Apple earnings after the closing bell, with the stock rising more than 2% heading into the results. Expectations are mixed, with investors eyeing slumping demand in China and a weak iPhone upgrade cycle. 

On Friday, all eyes will be on the April nonfarm payroll report as a key indicator of the Fed’s next move. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones predict 240,000 job gains, marking a deceleration from 303,000 jobs added in March.

Citi Bank’s Veronica Clark recently said in a note that falling quits align with survey data indicating rapidly declining employment prospects, and slower hiring has coincided with an increase in unemployment.

“We continue to see downside risks for upcoming employment reports, including April payrolls on Friday,” she said in a note.

Markets have regained momentum since Fed Chairman Jerome Powell calmed investors fretting over the prospects of a rate hike coming this year, saying that a move up in the fed funds rate would be unlikely. 

Bank of America’s US equity head, Savita Subramanian, has said the stock market has more room to run even without looser monetary policy. 

With high rates likely sticking around for longer, she told Bloomberg TV on Thursday that “this is actually kind of a reasonable setup for equities.” 

“I think we’re going to a soft landing, with a reasonable market environment, maybe better growth ahead than what we’re used to, higher rates and a little bit higher inflation,” she said. 

Here’s where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. closing bell on Thursday: 

Here’s what else is going on:

In commodities, bonds, and crypto: 

• West Texas Intermediate crude was about flat at $79.03 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was up 0.3% to $83.70 a barrel. 
• Gold inched up to $2,312.30 an ounce. 
• The 10-year Treasury yield ticked down to 4.579%.
• Bitcoin was up 2.8% to trade at $59,217.