USA stock indexes came at shouting distance from their record highs as strong results from department store chains and robust labour market data buoyed investor sentiment about economic growth.
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At 10:59am ET (1459 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 111.01 points, or 0.6 per cent, at 18,606.67.
The three main USA stock indexes reached new record highs by the end of the trading on Thursday.
Benchmark US crude fell 1.06 dollars, or 2.5%, to close at 41.71 dollars per barrel in NY.
The S&P 500 sank to its lowest level this year on February 11, but the index has rebounded nearly 20% from that bottom if you include Thursday’s gains.
The German DAX rose 0.9 percent, France’s CAC 40 index rallied 1.2 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 gained 0.7 percent.
The dollar index fell for the second straight day as weak USA productivity data on Tuesday somewhat dimmed the prospects of economic growth and would likely deter the Federal reserve from raising interest rates.
OIL RALLIES: An industry report released Thursday projected a more even balance in the supply and demand for oil this year.
However, some investors are concerned about high valuations. At the close of equity trading, the iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NYSE: TLT) was down 0.89 percent to $138.91. USA oil prices surged 4.3% to trade at $43.49 a barrel on Thursday, making its largest session gain last seen on July 12. The S&P 500 index fell 6.25 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 2,175.49, as the energy sector dropped 1.4%. Energy producers posted the steepest declines, slipping 1.4 percent amid crude’s slide. Oil and gas firms added 1.4%, while energy equipment companies rose 0.9%.
The S&P 500 index showed 25 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 64 new highs and 24 new lows. On its part, the tech-weighted NASDAQ gained 0.5% to 5228.40. The declines pulled both indexes slightly below their most-recent all-time highs set Thursday.
Perrigo dropped almost 10 percent after reporting a lower-than-expected profit and slashing its earnings forecast.
Ralph Lauren shares jumped 9 percent. The data showed USA commercial crude inventories rose by 1.1 million barrels to a total of 523.6 million last week. It also rose 5.0 per cent Thursday. Silicon Graphics added $1.71 to $7.69.
CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 101.19 yen from 101.94 yen while the euro strengthened to $1.1186 from $1.1113.
S&P 500 e-minis were up 4 points, or 0.18 percent, with 133,784 contracts traded.
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