After initially showing a lack of direction, stocks have moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Thursday. The gains on the day have partly offset the weakness seen over the past few sessions.
The major averages are currently posting moderate gains, near their highs for the session. The Dow is up 57.53 points or 0.4 percent at 15,052.76, the Nasdaq is up 14.15 points or 0.4 percent at 3,414.58 and the S&P 500 is up 7.06 points or 0.4 percent at 1,619.58.
The strength on Wall Street comes on the heels of the release of a pair of upbeat economic reports, including a report from the Commerce Department showing slightly stronger than expected retail sales growth in May.
The report said retail sales increased by 0.6 percent in May after edging up by 0.1 percent in April. The sales growth came in just above economist estimates for a 0.5 percent increase.
Excluding a 1.8 percent jump in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales increased by a more modest 0.3 percent in May. The increase in ex-auto sales matched economist estimates.
Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, said, "Cars are among the most interest rate sensitive areas of the economy. The decent May sales gain suggests the recent backup in rates has not hurt them yet, though the story may change in June."
"For now, however, car sales and retail sales in general are decent, suggesting consumers are recovering from the pain of higher taxes," he added.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department released a report showing an unexpected decrease in first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended June 8th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims fell to 334,000, a decrease of 12,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 346,000. The modest decrease came as a surprise to economists, who had been expecting initial jobless claims to edge up to 350,000.
While the upbeat has generated some optimism about the economic recovery, buying interest has remained somewhat subdued amid lingering concerns about the outlook for the Federal Reserve's stimulus program.
Recent comments from Fed officials have suggested that signs of sustained economic improvement may lead the central bank to taper the program within the next few meetings.
Sector News
Steel stocks have shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Steel Index up by 2 percent. The gain by the index comes after it ended the previous session at its worst closing level in almost four years.
Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) and Rio Tinto (RIO) are turning in two of the steel sector's best performances, advancing by 3.6 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively.
Significant strength has also emerged among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 1.7 percent gain being posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. Myriad Genetics (MYGN) is leading the sector higher following a Supreme Court ruling on gene patenting.
Commercial real estate stocks are also moving notably higher after falling sharply in recent weeks. The NYSE Arca REIT Index has risen by 1.4 percent after ending the previous session at a nearly five-month closing low.
Networking, telecom, and housing stocks are also seeing strength in mid-day trading, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region saw substantial weakness during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index plummeted by 6.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled by 2.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index ended the day down by 0.6 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both edged up by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved back to the upside following some recent weakness. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.2 basis points at 2.188 percent.
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Business News
June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.