02:16 PM EST, 12/20/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were higher intraday as markets parsed the latest economic data, including a report showing that the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation metric unexpectedly held steady last month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.5% at 42,982 after midday Friday, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.4% each to 5,948.4 and 19,637.2, respectively. All sectors were in the green, led by real estate.

In economic news, US consumer spending growth accelerated in November, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said. The Fed's preferred core measure, which excludes food and energy, was flat at 2.8% annually last month and eased to 0.1% from 0.3% sequentially. Market was predicting 2.9% and 0.2% growth, respectively.

"Although a more cautious Fed will likely pass on lowering (interest) rates again in January, we continue to look for a move in March as inflation makes further progress toward the target," BMO said.

US consumer sentiment grew in December to its highest level since April, while year-ahead inflation expectations logged its first month-over-month increase in seven months, final results from the University of Michigan's Surveys of Consumers showed.

"Broadly speaking, consumers believe that the economy has improved considerably as inflation has slowed, but they do not feel that they are thriving," Surveys of Consumers Director Joanne Hsu said.

The US 10-year yield fell 5.8 basis points to 4.51% intraday, while the two-year rate decreased 1.5 basis points to 4.30%.

In company news, Humana (HUM) has appointed Japan Mehta as chief information officer, effective in the first quarter, succeeding Sam Deshpande. The health insurer's shares were up 6.3%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500.

Netflix ( NFLX ) has secured exclusive rights in the US to stream the next two editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup. The streaming giant's shares rose 1.4%.

Novo Nordisk's ( NVO ) US-listed shares tumbled 17% after clinical trial results of the Danish pharmaceutical giant's investigative weight loss drug fell short of its own expectations.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.6% at $69.81 a barrel intraday.

Gold rose 1.6% to $2,648.80 per troy ounce, while silver increased 2.44% to $30.13 per ounce.