Core CPI below estimates
The U.S.  consumer price index  increased a seasonally adjusted  0.4% on the month  in December, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 2.9%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics  reported  Wednesday.  Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.2% on a monthly basis and 3.2% for the year. The annual reading was down 0.1 percentage points from November. Both core readings were also 0.1 percentage point below expectations.

Ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas
Israel  and  Hamas  on Wednesday  reached a ceasefire and hostage release deal  to end a  15-month war  in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli security cabinet must still vote on the agreement before its implementation. If approved, the first phase of the deal will include a full ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the populated areas of the Gaza enclave, U.S. President Joe Biden said.

Markets enjoy best day in months
U.S. stocks  popped on Wednesday  for their best day since November, on the back of the cooler-than-expected inflation reading and  Treasury yields easing. Asia-Pacific markets  tracked Wall Street higher Thursday. South Korea&rsquo s  Kospi index  advanced more than 1% after the Bank of Korea unexpectedly kept its  benchmark rate unchanged at 3%. The BOK also warned that the country&rsquo s gross domestic product is &ldquo highly likely&rdquo to miss forecasts for 2024 and 2025.

TSMC sees record year in sales
Taiwan-listed shares of  Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company  jumped around 3.8% after the company reported  fourth-quarter profit and revenue that beat LSEG consensus estimates. The company  released  its December revenue last week, bringing its annual total to 2.9 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($88 billion) &mdash its highest annual sales since the company went public in 1994.

Big banks blew past earnings estimates
JPMorgan Chase  and  Goldman Sachs  handily beat Wall Street estimates on both profit and revenue for the fourth quarter. JPMorgan executives said the bank will be  boosting share buybacks  even as CEO Jamie Dimon in May called the stock expensive. Separately, Goldman CEO David Solomon said at an event after the bank&rsquo s earnings call that  IPO activity  is &ldquo going to pick up&rdquo because of &ldquo an  improved business environment.&rdquo

[PRO] Who could buy Ubisoft?
Ubisoft  appointed advisors  on Jan. 9 to review its business direction. That&rsquo s stirred up speculation over who a possible buyer could be. CNBC&rsquo s Ryan Browne spoke to industry analysts to find out who might be a  likely candidate to take over Ubisoft  if the French gaming publisher does put itself up for sale.

Finally, a string of good news for bulls, after a dismal start of the year during which markets posted weekly losses because of dogged inflation worries.

Top of the page: U.S. inflation in December was lower than expected. To be sure, headline inflation, for the month, was 0.1 percentage point higher than the Dow Jones consensus estimate.

But the U.S. Federal Reserve pays more attention to core inflation because it strips out the volatile swings in energy and food prices, giving a more accurate reflection of price changes in the economy. And core inflation, on a monthly and annual basis, was cooler than expected.

Indeed, as CNBC&rsquo s Jeff Cox  noted, &ldquo Much of the move higher in the CPI came from a 2.6% gain in energy prices for the month, pushed higher by a 4.4% surge in gasoline. That was responsible for about 40% of the index&rsquo s gain, according to the BLS.&rdquo

&ldquo Today&rsquo s CPI number takes additional rate hikes off the table, which some market participants were beginning to prematurely price in,&rdquo said John Kerschner, head of U.S. securitized products and portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors.

The  U.S. 10-year Treasury yield  fell sharply, and is now 4.655%, compared with last Friday&rsquo s close of 4.774%, as traders moderated their interest rate expectations. 

That gave stocks room to breathe. The  S& P 500  jumped 1.83%, the  Dow Jones Industrial Average  climbed 1.65% and the  Nasdaq Composite  popped 2.45%. It was the best day for all three major averages since Nov. 6.

Upbeat earnings reports by banks also added to the cheer. Their financial results often serve as a forecast for the general direction of the economy: Banks&rsquo toplines expand when businesses and consumers undertake more financial activity, which, in turn, help to grow the economy.

For investors, the stars were aligned on Wednesday. But just as the skies constantly shift, volatility, in the form of a new incoming U.S. administration and policies, remain.

&mdash CNBC&rsquo s Jeff Cox, Hakyung Kim and Lisa Kailai Han contributed to this report.