The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 28,132.05 on Thursday with a gain of 220.75 points or 0.79%. The S&P 500 closed at 3,168.57 for a gain of 26.94 points or 0.86%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 8,717.32 for a gain of 63.27 points or 0.73%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 13.94 for a loss of 1.05 points or -7.00%.
Thursday’s market movers
U.S. indexes closed with gains Thursday. Investors cheered a suggested trade deal with China along with a proposal to repeal some imposed tariffs and cancel Sunday’s new tariff increases. Greater stability in the Federal Reserve’s outlook also helped investor appetite. Wednesday’s statement from the Federal Open Market Committee kept the federal funds rate unchanged, showed a positive outlook on the economy and signaled a floor for the near term at 1.50% to 1.75%.
In Europe, U.K. voters are voting on government leadership, which could affect the outcome of Brexit. The European Central Bank also announced no change to its central bank lending rates after the conclusion of Christine Lagarde’s first policy meeting.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage market survey showed mortgage rates increasing. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.73%, up from 3.68%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.19%, increasing from 3.14%.
- The Producer Price Index was unchanged in November following an increase of 0.4%. Year over year, the Producer Price Index increased 1.1%.
- The Core Producer Price Index excluding food and energy decreased 0.2% in November following an increase of 0.3%. Year over year, the Core Producer Price Index increased 1.3%.
- Initial jobless claims were 252,000, an increase from the previous week’s 203,000.
- The Treasury held auctions for four-week bills at a rate of 1.54%, eight-week bills at a rate of 1.54% and 30-year bonds at a rate of 2.307%.
In the S&P 500, the financial and energy sectors led gains. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Cisco (CSCO, Financial) 3.14%
- JPMorgan (JPM, Financial) 2.86%
- Dow Inc. (DOW, Financial) 2.65%
- Chevron (CVX, Financial) 2.22%
- Goldman Sachs (GS, Financial) 2.20%
- Exxon Mobil (XOM, Financial) 2.00%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,644.81 for a gain of 12.89 points or 0.79%. The S&P 600 closed at 1,009.59 for a gain of 10.55 points or 1.06%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Growth Index closed at 10,495.32 for a gain of 93.60 points or 0.90%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Value Index closed at 9874.80 for a gain of 116.44 points or 1.19%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 2,036.63 for a gain of 20.88 points or 1.04%; the S&P 100 at 1,412.56 for a gain of 11.73 points or 0.84%; the Nasdaq 100 at 8,466.90 for a gain of 64.29 points or 0.77%; the Russell 3000 at 1,856.28 for a gain of 15.03 points or 0.82%; the Russell 1000 at 1,749.69 for a gain of 14.20 points or 0.82%; the Wilshire 5000 at 32,370.38 for a gain of 262.50 points or 0.82%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 744.59 for a gain of 7.38 points or 1.00%.
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