U.S. daily stock indexes rose on Friday, ending the week on solid gains thanks to data on a slowdown in U.S. inflation.

A report from the Labor Department released Thursday showed consumer price growth in the country had slowed to its lowest rate since January. The weakening inflation has boosted investor optimism that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will not have to raise its benchmark rate as high as expected, Market Watch noted.

U.S. stock index futures – What’s happening in financial markets?

Consumer prices (CPI) in the U.S. rose 7.7% in October compared to the same month a year earlier. Inflation slowed from 8.2 percent in September and was below the average forecast of 8 percent by analysts surveyed by Trading Economics.

“The October report should signal that Fed concerns about inflation will begin to ease,” notes SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes. – The market’s surge on this data is because investors weren’t expecting such a significant weakening in the pace of consumer price growth.”

Thomas Lee, an analyst at Fundstrat Global Advisors, believes that the U.S. inflation data for October is changing the situation in the U.S. stock market, and predicts its rise until the end of this year.

A University of Michigan report Friday showed U.S. consumer confidence falling to its lowest level since July. The preliminary value of the index calculated by the university in November was 54.7 points from 59.9 points a month earlier.

Americans’ inflation expectations for the medium term (next year) rose to 5.1% this month from 5% in October, and for the long term (5 years) to 3% from 2.9%, the report showed.

Support for the U.S. stock market on Friday was provided by signals of easing covid restrictions in China, which caused oil and metal prices to rise. China’s State Council announced a reduction in quarantine for people in contact with COVID-19 infected and those arriving in the country from abroad to five days from seven.

On Friday, cryptocurrency exchange FTX entered bankruptcy under Section 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, and its chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried left his post. Shortly before that, the head of the operator of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance Changpeng Zhao, said that the cryptocurrency sector is facing a crisis similar to the financial crisis of 2008, which could lead to the collapse of several companies in the sector in the coming weeks.

Earlier we reported that Fin Markets overreacted to data on slowing inflation in the U.S. — a member of the Board of Governors of the Fed.