The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 26,145.99 on Thursday with a gain of 147.07 points or 0.57%. The S&P 500 closed at 2,904.18 for a gain of 15.26 points or 0.53%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 8,013.71 for a gain of 59.48 points or 0.75%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 12.37 for a loss of -0.77 points or -5.86%.
Thursday’s market movers
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 26,000 and U.S. market indexes reported their fourth consecutive day of gains on Thursday. Health care, technology and utilities stocks led the day’s gains.
On the political front, investors were more optimistic about trade with China after the U.S. reported proposing new negotiations. Meanwhile, the U.S. and Canada continued North American trade discussions.
Globally, several central bank meetings were also in the spotlight Thursday. Turkey’s central bank increased its federal borrowing rate, supporting its lira currency. Meanwhile, the Bank of England and European Central Bank kept rates unchanged.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The Consumer Price Index was 0.2% higher for the month and 2.7% higher annually.
- Jobless claims decreased by -1,000 to 204,000.
- The Treasury held an auction for 30-year notes at the rate of 3.088%.
- The Federal Reserve’s weekly balance sheet report showed a decrease of -$10.4 billion in assets for total assets of $4.208 trillion.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Apple (AAPL, Financial) 2.64%
- IBM (IBM, Financial) 1.62%
- Travelers (TRV, Financial) 1.53%
- Intel (INTC, Financial) 1.42%
- Merck (MRK, Financial) 1.39%
Small-cap stocks
In small-caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,714.32 for a loss of -1.38 points or -0.08%. The S&P 600 closed at 1,078.98 for a loss of -0.33 points or -0.03%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth TSM Index closed at 10,764.91 for a loss of -4.35 points or -0.04%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Value TSM Index closed at 10,585.79 for a gain of 6.83 points or 0.06%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 2,039.23 for a gain of 3.04 points or 0.15%; the S&P 100 at 1,286.56 for a gain of 7.13 points or 0.56%; the Russell 3000 at 1,724.85 for a gain of 8.02 points or 0.47%; the Russell 1000 at 1,611.48 for a gain of 8.22 points or 0.51%; the Wilshire 5000 at 30,245.40 for a gain of 128.34 points or 0.43%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 725.74 for a gain of 0.62 points or 0.09%.
