WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks have moved sharply higher during trading on Thursday, regaining ground after coming under pressure late in the previous session. The major averages have all shown strong moves to the upside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the way higher.
Currently, the major averages are hovering near their best levels of the day. The Nasdaq is up 405.23 points or 1.6 percent at 26,383.65, the S&P 500 is up 81.18 points or 1.1 percent at 7,632.99 and the Dow is up 363.18 points or 0.7 percent at 51,825.08.
The rally on Wall Street comes as traders once again look to pick up stocks at reduced levels after bargain hunting contributed to early strength on Wednesday before the late-day pullback.
The downturn seen during yesterday's trading dragged the Dow down to a three-month closing low, while the S&P 500 hit its lowest closing level in well over a month.
Stocks are also benefitting from an extended pullback by the price of crude oil, with U.S. crude oil futures slumping by 1.4 percent.
U.S. crude oil futures plunged by more than 3 percent on Wednesday amid optimism about the steps Saudi Arabia is taking to avoid supply disruptions after the closure of its key East-West pipeline.
Treasury yields have moved to the downside along with crude oil prices, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note slumping after ending the previous session roughly flat.
In U.S. economic news, a report released by the Labor Department showed an unexpected decline in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended September 12th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 196,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 206,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 208,000.
Sector News
Airline stocks have moved sharply higher amid the extended pullback by crude oil prices, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index soaring by 4.4 percent. The index is climbing further off the nearly four-month closing low set on Tuesday.
Substantial strength is also visible among gold stocks, as reflected by the 4.1 percent spike by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.
Computer hardware, semiconductor and networking stocks are also seeing significant strength, contributing to the jump by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.3 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.2 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.8 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.6 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved notably higher following the pullback seen late in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 6.1 basis points at 4.945 percent.
Copyright(c) 2026 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2026 AFX News
