More declines in US Treasury yields after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's comments Wednesday and favorable earnings news bolstered equities for a second day Thursday. The Dow Jones industrial average eased 0.1 percent, the S&P 500 gained 1.4 percent, and the NASDAQ was up 3.3 percent. US Treasury yields and oil prices fell while the dollar was mixed.

Market sentiment remains favorable after Powell's comments came across much less hawkish than expected. Positive jobless claims and productivity and costs reports supported risk assets, and bolstered hopes for a soft landing and more progress on inflation. On the earnings front, Meta's surprisingly good quarter lifted the stock and helped megacaps have a huge day as the NASDAQ outperformed.

Among sectors, best were consumer discretionary, communications services, technology and real estate. Lagging were consumer staples, health care, materials, and energy, with the latter hurt by another selloff in oil prices.

Market Reflections track market reaction to the trading day's major events. Economic data, policymaker speeches, and company news are featured in this report as well as key indexes and financial instruments.

Understanding why markets respond as they do is fundamental for an investor. Market Reflections help explain how the day's events, news, and data impact the outlook for the economy and for market prices.