02:01 PM EDT, 06/12/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes rose as bets favoring monetary policy easing jumped after the producer price inflation rate in May increased less than forecast and jobless claims beat expectations, outweighing President Donald Trump's threat to impose tariffs unilaterally.

The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2% to 19,662.1, the S&P 500 climbed 0.3% to 6,040.3, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.2% to 42,930.7 after midday Thursday. Technology and utilities led the gainers, while communication services and industrials were among the steepest decliners.

The CME's FedWatch tool showed a 23% probability that the Federal Reserve will cut the target range for its federal funds rate to 4% to 4.25% in July from the current 4.25% to 4.50%, ending its policy pause. That likelihood stood at 18% a day ago. In September, the chances of the quarter-point cut stood at 58%, while the probability of a 50 basis point reduction climbed to 15% from 12% a day earlier.

President Donald Trump ripped Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell as a "numbskull" on Thursday as he turned up the heat on the central bank chief to lower interest rates, CNBC TV18 reported. Trump claimed at the White House that lowering rates by two percentage points would save the U.S. $600 billion per year, "but we can't get this guy to do it."

In economic news, producer prices rebounded less than expected last month, adding to a narrative that cost pressures remain muted. The producer price index increased 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. A survey compiled by Bloomberg pointed to a 0.2% gain. The latest reading marks the first increase in three months.

May's core producer price index rose 0.1%, below the expected 0.3% increase and following a 0.2% drop in April.

The PPI print follows Wednesday's data showing a surprise deceleration in consumer inflation last month.

"The downside surprise on the May consumer and producer price report continues to offer relief for a Fed increasingly concerned about a potential acceleration in cost pressures," Stifel Chief Economist Lindsey Piegza said in a note. "Additionally at this point, this week's reports indicate the impact of tariffs thus far remains somewhat muted, along with a hesitancy by at least some companies to pass on price increases to consumers."

Initial jobless claims were steady at 248,000 in the week ended June 7 but above analyst expectations for 242,000. This is the highest weekly count since the week ended Oct. 5, according to a Jefferies note. Continuing claims rose by 54,000 to 1.951 million, hitting its highest since November 2021, the note added.

"Broadly, the data reflect the continued, gradual cooling in the labor market," Chief US Economist Thomas Simons said in the note.

Most US Treasury yields fell, with the 10-year down 5.7 basis points to 4.36% and the two-year rate was 3.1 basis points lower at 3.92%.

The ICE US Dollar Index fell 0.7% to 97.97.

Trump said Wednesday he plans to impose import tariffs on countries that failed to agree to new trade deals. "Now, at a certain point, we're just going to send letters out, and I think you understand that, saying this is the deal," he told reporters at the Kennedy Center, according to news outlets. "You can take it, or you can leave it."

"Trump brought forward the July 9th tariff deadline for reciprocal tariffs to instead roughly two weeks from now when he claims he will set unilateral tariffs," Derek Holt, head of capital market economics at Scotiabank, said in a note.

Gold futures surged 1.7% to $3,401.5 per ounce as Trump announced that US personnel were being moved out of the Middle East amid increased tensions with Iran, a note from D A Davidson said.