Financial-Markets                      09/18 09:37

   

   NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street is ticking toward more records on Thursday, led 
by a rally for tech stocks after Nvidia and Intel announced a $5 billion 
partnership.

   The S&P 500 rose 0.4% and was on track to top its all-time high, which was 
set at the start of the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 17 
points, or less than 0.1%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq 
composite was 0.8% higher.

   Intel soared 26% and was on pace for its best day since 1987 after Nvidia 
said it would buy $5 billion of the chip maker's stock. It's part of a 
collaboration where the pair will develop custom products for data centers and 
personal computers. Nvidia climbed 2.5% and was by far the strongest force 
lifting the S&P 500 because it's Wall Street's most valuable company.

   Encouraging reports on the economy, meanwhile, helped lift Treasury yields 
in the bond market. One report said that growth in manufacturing in the 
mid-Atlantic region was much stronger than economists expected. Another said 
that fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than 
expected.

   The report on joblessness came after the prior week's data showed a 
disconcerting leap to a four-year high. The job market has slowed so much that 
the Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its main interest rate for the first time 
this year in order to give it some help.

   The Fed also indicated more cuts may be on the way this year and next, 
though Chair Jerome Powell warned that the Fed is stuck in a precarious 
position and may have to change course quickly. That's because the economy is 
in the unusual situation where the job market is slowing when inflation is 
remaining stubbornly high at the same time.

   The Fed is in charge of fixing both, but it has only one tool to do that. 
And helping one by moving interest rates often hurts the other in the short 
term.

   Expectations are high on Wall Street for the Fed to keep cutting interest 
rates, and a halt in them could send stocks tumbling. Critics already say their 
prices have shot too high and become too expensive.

   On Wall Street, Novo Nordisk saw its stock that trades in the United States 
rise 5.5% after the Danish company said a newly published study showed its 
once-daily pill version of Wegovy helped people lose significant weight. It 
also said that its Ozempic product reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke and 
death for patients versus another treatment for people with type 2 diabetes.

   On the losing end of Wall Street, Cracker Barrel shares fell 4.1% after the 
restaurant chain reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts 
expected. It also gave a forecast for revenue in its upcoming fiscal year that 
fell short of analysts', as the controversy over its planned logo change 
continues to play out.

   The company behind Olive Garden and other chains, Darden Restaurants, sank 
8.8% after it likewise reported a profit for the latest quarter that was below 
analysts's expectations. It also raised its forecast for revenue growth this 
fiscal year, but not by much more than analysts expected.

   The Walt Disney Co. slipped 0.8% after the entertainment giant announced 
that its ABC television division had suspended Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show 
indefinitely after comments that he made about Charlie Kirk's killing led a 
group of ABC-affiliated stations to say they would not air the show.

   Earlier in the day, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel's comments 
"truly sick" and said his agency has a strong case for holding Kimmel, ABC and 
Disney accountable for spreading misinformation.

   In stock markets abroad, indexes rose in Europe following a mixed finish in 
Asia.

   London's FTSE 100 added 0.1% after the Bank of England held its main 
interest rate steady.

   South Korea's Kospi jumped 1.4%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.4% for two 
of the world's bigger moves.

   In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped to 4.12% from 
4.06% late Wednesday. It's a notable move after it had briefly dropped below 4% 
on Wednesday, weighed down by expectations for continued cuts to interest rates 
by the Fed.

   ___

   AP Writers Teresa Cerojano and Matt Ott contributed.

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