Major U.S. stock-indexes little changed on Thursday, taking a breather from their robust two-day run, as investors keenly await a speech from Fed Chair Janet Yellen on Friday. Comments from policymakers in recent days and upbeat U.S. economic data have raised expectations that the Federal Reserve could pull the trigger on a rate increase much sooner than previously thought.

Dow stocks mixed (17in negative, 13 in positive area). Top looser - Microsoft Corporation (MSFT, -1,01%). Top gainer - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT, +0,68%).

S&P sectors also mixed. Top looser - Basic Materials (-0,4%). Top gainer - Utilities (+0,6%).

At the moment:

Dow 17806.00 -11.00 -0.06%

S&P 500 2086.75 -0.50 -0.02%

Nasdaq 100 4481.25 +6.50 +0.15%

Oil 49.51 -0.05 -0.10%

Gold 1226.60 +2.80 +0.23%

U.S. 10yr 1.85 -0.02

U.S. stock-index futures edged higher.

Global Stocks:

Nikkei 16,772.46 +15.11 +0.09%

Hang Seng 20,397.11 +29.06 +0.14%

Shanghai Composite 2,822.57 +7.49 +0.27%

FTSE 6,254.25 -8.60 -0.14%

CAC 4,505.08 +23.44 +0.52%

DAX 10,274.56 +69.35 +0.68%

Crude $50.08 (+1.05%)

Gold $1228.10 (+0.35%)

(company / ticker / price / change ($/%) / volume)

Upgrades:

Downgrades:

Other:

HP Inc. (HPQ) reiterated with a Hold at Needham Research
HP Inc. (HPQ) reiterated with a Neutral at Mizuho Securities

HP Inc. reported Q2 FY 2016 earnings of $0.41 per share (versus $0.87 in Q2 FY 2015), beating analysts' consensus of $0.38.

The company's quarterly revenues amounted to $11.588 bln (-10.7% y/y), missing consensus estimate of $11.709 bln.

HP Inc. also issued guidance for Q3 and FY2016, projecting Q3 EPS of $0.37-0.40 (versus analysts' consensus estimate of $0.41) and FY2016 EPS of $1.59-1.65 (versus analysts' consensus estimate of $1.58).

HPQ was traded at $12.20 (0%) in pre-market trading.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said on Wednesday that negative interest rates would only be a last resort for the Fed, noting that negative interest rates were "perverse". He added that the Fed had other tools to stimulate the economy.

Minneapolis Fed president also said that he expected the U.S. economy to expand moderately.

Kashkari is not a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) this year.

Ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) said on Wednesday that Britain's exit from the European Union (Brexit) could have a negative impact on the pound as an international reserve currency, adding that Brexit could also have a negative impact on the country's credit rating.

S&P analyst Frank Gill said that Brexit could weigh on foreign direct investment and other capital inflows.

Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said on Wednesday that he would support an interest rate hike in the "near future" if the U.S. economy continued to improve.

"That may not be June or July," he added.

Kaplan noted that the referendum on Britain's membership in the European Union may weigh on the Fed's interest rate decision in June.

Ratings agency Fitch Ratings said in its latest Global Economic Outlook (GEO) on Wednesday that the slowdown in emerging economies and adjustments to energy sector spending continued to weigh on global growth. Fitch Chief Economist Brian Coulton said that near-term risks to the growth of emerging economies eased.

The agency expects the U.S. economy to expand 1.8% in 2016. It is the first sub-2% growth since 2013. Fitch upgraded its growth forecasts for China to 6.3% in 2016 from the previous estimate of 6.2% and to 6.3% in 2017 from the previous estimate of 6.0%.

The agency raised its growth forecasts for the Eurozone. The economy in the Eurozone is expected to expand 1.6% in 2016, up by 0.1% from the previous estimate.

The growth forecast for the U.K. was downgraded. The economy is expected to grow 1.9% in 2016, down by 0.2% from the previous estimate.

Fitch expects the global economy (based on an aggregate of 20 large developed and emerging economies) to expand 2.5% in 2016, unchanged from 2015 and from the previous estimate in March, and around 3% in 2017.

European stocks closed with strong gains Wednesday, as international creditors reached a deal to unlock more bailout funds for Greece and oil prices gained. Greece is now in line to receive 10.3 billion euros ($11.48 billion) in new loans, if a deal struck early Wednesday is signed off by the 19 countries comprising the eurozone.

U.S. stocks advanced for a second straight session on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 posting its highest close in nearly a month on the back of a rally in energy and materials shares.

Asian stocks rose to a one-week high and the currencies of oil-exporting nations strengthened as Brent crude traded above $50 a barrel for the first time since November. Gold rebounded from a seven-week low as the dollar lost ground versus most of its major peers.

Based on MarketWatch materials

(index / closing price / change items /% change)

Nikkei 225 16,757.35 +258.59 +1.57 %

Hang Seng 20,368.05 +537.62 +2.71 %

S&P/ASX 200 5,372.51 +76.94 +1.45 %

Shanghai Composite 2,815.28 -6.39 -0.23 %

FTSE 100 6,262.85 +43.59 +0.70 %

CAC 40 4,481.64 +50.12 +1.13 %

Xetra DAX 10,205.21 +147.90 +1.47 %

S&P 500 2,090.54 +14.48 +0.70 %

NASDAQ Composite 4,894.89 +33.84 +0.70 %

Dow Jones 17,851.51 +145.46 +0.82 %