New York, NY (BBN)– US stock markets rallied on Thursday with the Nasdaq closing at a record high, reports BBC.
The tech-heavy index rose 68 points, or 1.3%, to 5,132.95
Meanwhile the Dow Jones closed up 180 points, or 1% to 18,115 while the S&P jumped 21 points, or 1%, to 2,121.22
As traders digested the Federal Reserve’s statement from Wednesday, they were encouraged by its insistence that rates will only be increased gradually.
“The Fed’s likely to raise rates later this year, but maybe not as aggressively as some market participants worried,” said Michael Baele, managing director and senior portfolio manager at US Bank Private Client Reserve.
The Nasdaq closing high was more than 25 points above its last record on 27 May.
On the economic front, new figures showing an uptick in inflation and fewer jobless claims sketched a picture of modest improvement.
US consumer prices registered their largest increase in two years on higher oil prices. The CPI rose 0.4% in May, after a 0.1% rise in April.
The US Labor Department said initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 267,000 for the week ending 13 June.
It was the 15th consecutive week that claims held below 300,000, a threshold usually associated with a firming labour market.
In corporate news, shares in Martha Stewart Living, which owns the Martha Stewart publishing and homeware brands, jumped more than 20% on reports that Sequential Brands was close to buying it.
Another company to do well was Harley Davidson, which rose more than 4%, after UBS upgraded the company.
On the downside, technology giant Oracle shares dived more than 4% as it reported disappointed net income for the quarter.
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