After seeing a modest upward move at the open, stocks continue to show strength in late morning trading on Thursday. The day's buying interest came as traders reacted positively to some upbeat news on the job market, although the upside has been limited by low volume.
The Labor Department reported that first time claims for unemployment benefits decreased by more than expected in the week ended December 19th, with initial jobless claims falling to their lowest level in well over a year.
The day's strongest performances have come from the electronic storage and steel sectors, with the NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index and the NYSE Arca Steel Index up by 1.7 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.
On the other hand, modest weakness is visible among airline and healthcare-related stocks, with the pullback in the healthcare sector coming despite today's passage of the healthcare reform bill by the Senate.
The major averages have all seen choppy movement in recent dealing, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 hovering near fresh yearly highs set earlier in the session. The Dow is up by 4.87 points at 10,508.31, the Nasdaq is up by 12.20 at 2,281.78 and the S&P 500 is up by 4.26 points at 1,124.85.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.