• S&P 500 Futures: 5,826.25 ⬆️ up 0.82%
• S&P 500: 5,722.26 ⬇️ down 0.19%
• <strong>Nasdaq</strong> Composite: 18,082.21 ⬆️ up 0.04%
• <strong>Dow</strong> Jones Industrial Average: 41,914.75 ⬇️ down 0.70% 
• STOXX Europe 600: 525.20 ⬆️ up 1.17%
• Nikkei 225: 38,925.63 ⬆️ up 2.79%
• <strong>SSE</strong> Composite Index 3,000.95 ⬆️ up 3.61%
• Bitcoin: $63,858.60 ⬆️ up 1.13%

China: Week’s second stimulus shot boosts markets

The China stock rally returned as Beijing announced more measures to revive the world’s second-largest economy, including cash handouts for the poor and a reported $140 billion injection into the largest state-run banks. The Shanghai index zoomed to a 3.61% gain Thursday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 4.16%.

Japan: Chip earnings boost shares

The Nikkei 225 surged 2.79%, led by semiconductor industry stocks Disco and Tokyo Electron, after better-than-expected earnings from U.S. chip giant Micron Technology.

Europe: China stimulus and luxury boost shares

European stocks rose on Thursday morning, energized by the new China stimulus. The tech and mining sectors led the way, while luxury brands LVMH and Hermes were both up around 6% in early trading. H&M flopped 3.6% in morning trading, though, as it said it would miss a key profitability target. The STOXX Europe 600 was up 1.17% in early trading.

U.S. pre-market trading rises on chip and China optimism

All three U.S. indexes rose in pre-market trading Thursday, as investors digested the sugar-high of China stimulus and Micron’s better-than-expected quarterly report. The chip company’s shares were up more than 15% in pre-market trading.

The Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 drift

On Wednesday, the Dow dropped 0.7% and the S&P 500 dropped a tidy 0.19%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added a barely perceptible 0.04%, as investors waited to see what Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell would say in a Thursday speech.