The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to regain ground after moving notably lower over the two previous sessions.

The futures turned positive following the release of a highly anticipated Commerce Department report showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with economist estimates in the month of April, while core consumer prices edged up by slightly less than expected.

The Commerce Department said its personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose by 0.3 percent for the third straight month in April, matching economist estimates.

Meanwhile, the report said the core PCE price index, which excludes food and energy prices, crept up by 0.2 percent in April after rising by 0.3 percent in March. Economists had expected another 0.3 percent increase.

The annual rates of growth by the PCE price index and the core PCE price index were both unchanged from the previous month at 2.7 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively. The readings matched expectations.

The readings on inflation, which are said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve, were included in the Commerce Department’s report on personal income and spending.

The smaller than expected monthly increase in core prices may lead to renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates, although the unchanged annual readings are likely to temper hopes for a near-term rate cut.

After ending Wednesday’s session mostly lower, stock saw further downside during trading on Thursday. The major averages all finished the day firmly in negative territory, with the Dow once again falling to its lowest closing level in almost a month.

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 fell to new lows for the session late in the day but regained some ground going into the close.

The Dow slid 330.06 points or 0.9 percent to 38,11.48, the Nasdaq slumped 183.50 points or 1.1 percent to 16,737.08 and the S&P 500 fell 31.47 points or 0.6 percent to 5,235.48.

A nosedive by shares of Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) weighed on the Dow, with the cloud-based software company plunging by 19.7 percent to its lowest closing level in over five months.

Salesforce came under pressure after reporting weaker than expected fiscal first quarter revenues and providing disappointing fiscal second quarter guidance.

Concerns about the outlook for interest rates also continued to weigh on the markets ahead of the release of closely watched inflation data on Friday.

On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits crept modestly higher in the week ended May 25th

The report said initial jobless claims rose to 219,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 216,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 218,000 from the 215,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said gross domestic product climbed by 1.3 percent in the first quarter compared to the previously reported 1.6 percent jump.

The downwardly revised increase, which was in line with economists, compares to the 3.4 percent surge in GDP in the fourth quarter of 2023.

A separate report released by the National Association of Realtors showed a sharp pullback by pending home sales in the U.S. in the month of April.

Despite the losses posted by the major averages, telecom stocks moved sharply higher on the day, resulting in a 2.9 percent spike by the NYSE Arca North American Telecom Index.

Significant strength was also visible among housing stocks, as reflected by the 2.0 percent jump by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

Gold stocks also turned in a strong performance amid a slight increase by the price of the precious metal, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index climbing by 1.6 percent.

Commercial real estate, computer hardware and transportation stocks also saw notable strength on the day, while Salesforce led the software sector, resulting in a 4.8 percent plunge by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.