Stocks rose for a third time this week on Thursday as the latest unemployment data signaled the worst of the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic may be over.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 135 points higher, or 0.5% and was headed for its third straight day of gains. The S&P 500 gained 0.7% while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.8%.
The Labor Department said Thursday another 2.1 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week. That’s more than a Dow Jones estimate of 2.05 million. To be sure, the pace of new filings has dropped from previous weeks. Continuing claims, which represent a better unemployment picture, plunged by nearly 4 million in their first decline since the coronavirus outbreak.
Source: CNBC