WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved mostly higher during trading on Thursday, extending the upward move seen over the course of the previous session. With the continued advance, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has reached a new record intraday high.
Currently, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 are just off their highs of the session. The Nasdaq is up 140.29 points or 0.7 percent at 20,870.78, the S&P 500 is up 20.18 points or 0.3 percent at 6,283.88 and the Dow is up 85.02 points or 0.2 percent at 44,339.80.
The strength on Wall Street comes following the release of a batch of largely upbeat U.S. economic data, including a Commerce Department report showing retail sales rebounded by much more than expected in the month of June.
The report said retail sales climbed by 0.6 percent in June after slumping by 0.9 percent in May. Economists had expected retail sales to inch up by 0.1 percent.
Excluding a jump in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales still rose by 0.5 percent in June after edging down by 0.2 percent in May. Ex-auto sales were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.
'There has been a lot of talk about tariffs and the stock market back to all-time highs, but there has been less talk about the economy at full employment and a consumer who continues to spend,' said Chris Zaccarelli, Chief Investment Officer for Northlight Asset Management.
He added, 'Although valuations are high, as long as the economy continues to expand and unemployment remains low, then people will continue to spend and the flywheel can keep generating higher profits, which is the engine for higher stock prices.
A separate report released by the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly dipped to a three-month low in the week ended July 12th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 221,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week's revised level of 228,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 235,000 from the 227,000 originally reported for the previous week.
The Labor Department also released another report showing import prices in the U.S. inched up by less than expected in the month of June.
Sector News
Airline stocks have shown a significant move to the upside on the day, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index climbing by 1.7 percent.
United Airlines (UAL) has helped lead the sector higher, surging by 4.4 percent after reporting better than expected second quarter earnings.
Considerable strength is also visible among networking stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent gain being posted by the NYSE Arca Networking Index.
Software, brokerage and computer hardware stocks are also seeing notable strength, while gold stocks are moving sharply lower amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index increased by 0.6 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.4 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are up by 1.1 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries are extending the rebound seen in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 1.6 basis points at 4.439 percent.
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