NEW YORK, April 30 (Reuters) – The New York Stock Exchange ended higher on Thursday following strong quarterly results and reassuring economic data, which overshadowed concerns about oil supply due to the maritime blockade in the Middle East, leading to a surge in crude oil prices.
The Dow Jones index rose 1.62%, or 790.33 points, to 49,652.14 points.
The broader S&P 500 gained 73.05 points, or 1.02%, to 7,209.00 points.
The Nasdaq Composite advanced by 219.07 points (0.89%) to 24,892.31 points.
With gains on the day, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are experiencing their highest monthly increases since 2020, while the Dow Jones is recording its strongest monthly gain since November 2024.
The decline in oil prices on Thursday, which had reached multi-year highs due to the war in Iran, along with data showing healthy growth in the U.S. economy, reassured investors.
The main Wall Street indices rose throughout the session.
Data released during the day showed that the U.S. economy grew by 2.0% in the first quarter, while weekly jobless claims in the United States fell to a low not seen since 1969, even though inflation remained above 3% due to energy prices.
“A large part of the economic data has calmed investors’ fears,” said Paul Nolte, a strategist at Murphy & Sylvest in Illinois. “Additionally, there have been really good results from a variety of companies,” he added to explain the day’s gains.
“As long as there is no change in market dynamics and the economy, the momentum will continue to rise,” he said.
The industry, driven by a 9.8% increase in Caterpillar following its strong quarterly results, was the top-performing sector in the S&P 500 and contributed to the rise of the Dow Jones.
On the other hand, as the only sector to end in the red, technology limited the Nasdaq’s gains, following the after-hours earnings reports of tech giants Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft.
While Alphabet surged 10% after reporting a record quarter for its “cloud” division, Meta and Microsoft declined by 8.7% and 3.9% respectively due to increased concerns about massive investments in artificial intelligence (AI) development.
Apple, another member of Wall Street’s “Fabulous Seven,” was set to release its earnings on Thursday night.
For more information, please click here.
(Written by Jean Terzian)
by Stephen Culp and Niket Nishant
