By Anna Hirtenstein 

U.S. stock futures were mixed Thursday ahead of fresh data on the economic growth, jobless claims and the manufacturing sector, which will offer fresh insights into the pace of recovery.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 0.2%, suggesting that the blue-chips index may climb to another record after closing Wednesday at an all-time high. Contracts linked to the S&P 500 were relatively flat. Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.4%, suggesting declines in tech stocks after the opening bell.

Investors' appetite for risky assets rebounded on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's comments this week that the central bank will keep interest rates low for a while. Optimism about the economic recovery and a sharp rise in bond yields -- which closed Wednesday at their highest level in a year -- is prompting money managers to shift funds into stocks that are likely to benefit from a rebound this year. That has weighed on technology shares, which powered much of last year's rally.

"The rise in bond yields triggers this rotation, away from growth stocks and more in favor of value stocks," said Sophie Chardon, cross asset strategist at Lombard Odier. "The rise in yields is supportive for banks, higher oil prices are supportive for energy. It is a change of leadership."

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note ticked up to 1.413%, from 1.388% on Wednesday. The yield on government bonds has been on the rise as investors cut their holdings of the safest assets.

Investors are also closely watching for signs of inflation jumping following large doses of monetary and fiscal stimulus. At the same time, markets have also turned cautious as recent economic data showed that the rebound is likely to be slow and halting.

A preliminary estimate for U.S. gross domestic product in the fourth quarter is due out at 8:30 a.m. ET, along with new durable goods orders for January.

The latest data on weekly jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, will be out at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists are expecting a moderate decline for the week ended Feb. 20, although the number of applications is likely to remain at historically high levels.

"People have tried to map a classic recovery cycle to this Covid recovery period. But because it was like a switch was flipped when we all went into lockdown, then it is like a switch is flipped up now," said Grace Peters, an investment strategist at J.P. Morgan Private Bank. "We're seeing the economy recover faster. We're also seeing this in corporate earnings coming in better than expected."

The earnings season is winding down: Airbnb, Beyond Meat, DoorDash and Salesforce.com are scheduled to release their results on Thursday, along with Covid-19 vaccine maker Moderna.

Stocks popular with Reddit users on the WallStreetBets forum soared in the last hour of trading on Wednesday, in volatility reminiscent of activity seen last month. In premarket trading, GameStop climbed 55% and AMC Entertainment rose 20%.

The moves show "there is still liquidity and a lot of access to speculative bets," said Ms. Chardon. "We have to be prepared to live with this kind of targeted bubble, but I wouldn't see it as a threat to the global equity market."

Oil prices continued to tick up, with Brent crude rising for the fourth day. The international gauge for oil added 0.6% to trade at $66.50 a barrel, near its highest level since January 2020.

Bitcoin prices slipped, falling nearly 4% to around $49,000, according to data from CoinDesk.

Overseas, the pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.3%.

Among individual equities, beer maker Anheuser-Busch InBev fell over 5% after its fourth-quarter profit came in below estimates. British packaging company DS Smith jumped 8% on reports that rival Mondi is exploring a takeover.

In Asia, most major benchmarks finished the day up. The Shanghai Composite Index added 0.6% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 1.2%. South Korea's Kospi Index rallied 3.5% after its central bank kept interest rates at historic lows.

Write to Anna Hirtenstein at anna.hirtenstein@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 25, 2021 05:28 ET (10:28 GMT)

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