Wall Street stocks mostly rose on Thursday following better-than-expected US economic data and mixed earnings reports that lifted Tesla and pushed IBM lower.

US economic growth in the fourth quarter came in at 2.9 per cent, above analyst estimates on resilient consumer spending.

While the report doesn't remove fears of a recession, analysts said the data boosts hope for a "soft landing," with Federal Reserve interest rates leading to lower inflation but not tipping the economy into a deep downturn.

"The GDP number shows us that the consumer remains resilient," said Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investments. "It also shows us the Fed is winning its battle against inflation and doing it in a way where inflation is coming down while GDP continues to grow."

About 30 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2 per cent at 33,674.98.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.2 per cent at 4,023.96, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.7 per cent to 11,390.36.

Among individual companies, Tesla rocketed 7.9 per cent higher after reporting record quarterly earnings as CEO Elon Musk said recent price cuts in the United States and Europe had boosted demand.

But Dow member IBM slid 3.8 per cent as it disclosed that it was cutting some 3,900 jobs related to businesses it has divested.

Chevron advanced 2.7 per cent after announcing a $75 billion share buyback.

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