Stocks have shown a strong upward move over the course of the trading day on Thursday, benefiting from the release of upbeat U.S. economic data as well as a positive reaction to the latest news out of Europe. The major averages have climbed firmly into positive territory.
A batch of better than expected economic data contributed to early strength on Wall Street, with a report from the Labor Department showing that weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell to a nearly four-year low adding to recent optimism about the outlook for the labor market.
Further buying interest was generated by a report from German newspaper Die Welt indicating that the European Central Bank will complete an exchange of Greek government debt for new Greek bonds over the weekend.
Electronic storage stocks continue to turn in some of the market's best performances in mid-afternoon trading, with the NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index up by 3.7 percent. With the gain, the index has reached its best intraday level in well over six months.
Significant strength has also emerged among software stocks, as reflected by the 2.8 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones Software Index. Trucking, gold, banking, and semiconductor stocks are also posting standout gains amid broad based buying interest.
The major averages have moved roughly sideways in recent trading, hovering near their best levels of the day. The Dow is up 119.50 points or 0.9 percent at 12,900.45, the Nasdaq is up 41.24 points or 1.4 percent at 2,957.07 and the S&P 500 is up 14.13 points or 1.1 percent at 1,357.36.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Market Analysis
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.