The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 27,182.45 on Thursday with a gain of 45.41 points or 0.17%. The S&P 500 closed at 3,009.57 for a gain of 8.64 points or 0.29%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 8,194.47 for a gain of 24.79 points or 0.30%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 14.32 for a loss of 0.29 points or -1.98%.
Thursday’s market movers
U.S. indexes closed higher Thursday with key catalysts helping to improve the global outlook. The European Central Bank reduced its borrowing rate by 10 basis points to -0.50%. It also announced it would be buying 20 billion euros ($22 billion) of Eurozone debt per month beginning in November. Separately, the Trump administration said it would delay tariff increases from 25% to 30% going into effect on Oct. 1 by two weeks. Reports also showed China taking steps to improve trade relations leading up to October trade talks.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The Consumer Price Index showed price inflation of 0.1% in August following an increase of 0.3%. Year over year, the Consumer Price Index was up 1.7% following an increase of 1.8%.
- The Core Consumer Price Index, excluding food and energy, increased 0.3% in August following an increase of 0.3%. Year over year, the Core Consumer Price Index increased 2.4% following an increase of 2.2%.
- Jobless claims decreased to 204,000 from 219,000.
- The Treasury held auctions for four-week bills at a rate of 1.94%, eight-week bills at a rate of 1.92% and 30-year bonds at a rate of 2.270%.
- The federal government’s August monthly budget statement showed a deficit of -$200 billion. The government also reported that the 2018-19 federal budget has exceeded $1 trillion.
- Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage market survey showed mortgage rates increasing. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.56%, increasing from 3.49%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.09%, increasing from 3.00%.
In the S&P 500, materials and technology led gains. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Visa (V, Financial) 1.99%
- Travelers (TRV, Financial) 1.68%
- 3M (MMM, Financial) 1.51%
- Microsoft (MSFT, Financial) 1.35%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,576.20 for a gain of 0.49 points or 0.03%. The S&P 600 closed at 974.43 for a loss of 0.56 points or -0.057%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Growth Index closed at 10,053.43 for a loss of 2.59 points or -0.03%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Value Index closed at 9,609.27 for a loss of 24.31 points or -0.25%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1,962.38 for a loss of 1.73 points or -0.088%; the S&P 100 at 1,332.06 for a gain of 4.19 points or 0.32%; the Nasdaq 100 at 7,917.34 for a gain of 29.76 points or 0.38%; the Russell 3000 at 1,765.35 for a gain of 4.28 points or 0.24%; the Russell 1000 at 1,663.15 for a gain of 4.37 points or 0.26%; the Wilshire 5000 at 30,792.81 for a gain of 69.12 points or 0.22%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 732.24 for a loss of 0.76 points or -0.10%.
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