Stock market today: Wall Street rises following updates on consumer confidence, job openings

The S&P 500 rose 1.2%, adding to the weeks’ early gains and putting the benchmark index on track for its biggest gain in a month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 215 points, or 0.6%, to 34,775 as of 1:01 p.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq rose 1.6%.

The Conference Board, a business research group, reported that consumer confidence tumbled in August, surprising economists that were expecting levels to hold steady around the strong July reading. Consumer confidence and spending have been closely-watched amid persistent pressure from inflation.

Also on Tuesday, the government reported that job openings fell more than expected by economists. The report also showed that the number of Americans quitting their jobs fell sharply for the second straight month, clear signs that the labor market is cooling in a way that could reduce inflation.

A strong job market has been credited as a bulwark against a recession, but it has made the Fed’s mission to tame inflation more difficult. The latest data will likely be welcomed by the central bank, because fewer job openings and less quitting reduces pressure on employers to raise pay to find and keep workers.

Wall Street is also reviewing the latest earnings from several big retailers.

Best Buy rose 5.5% after the consumer electronics retailer beat Wall Street forecasts, even as second-quarter profit and sales declined from a year ago. Discount retailer Big Lots surged 32.3% after reporting strong financial results.

Investors and economists have several more big economic reports on tap this week. The government will provide another update on the nation’s gross domestic product on Wednesday. It will also release its monthly employment report for August on Friday.

A key inflation update is expected on Thursday when the government reports personal consumption and expenditures for July. It is the Fed’s preferred measure for inflation and has been cooling for months. It eased to 3% in June and was as a high as 7% a year ago.

The Fed has been raising its main interest rate for more than a year to its highest level since 2001, in an effort to bring inflation back down to its 2% goal. The central bank held rates steady at its last meeting and Wall Street is betting that it will do the same at its September meeting.

“My gut tells me the Fed is close to being done with rate hikes, but we need to see more traction with some of these numbers we saw today,” said Jason Betz, private wealth advisor at Ameriprise Financial.

The yield on the 2-year Treasury, which tracks expectations for the Fed, fell significantly following the latest consumer confidence and job openings reports. It slipped to 4.90% from about 5.03% just before the report was out. It stood at 5.05% late Monday.

The Fed has said it is prepared to continue raising interest rates to cool inflation, but will base its decisions on the latest economic data.

Markets in Europe and Asia gained ground.