The major indexes surged on Thursday, adding to what's been an upbeat week on Wall Street. The Dow tacked on 322 points, now just 2.5% off its mid-May peak. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both seamlessly carved out record closing and intraday highs, with the former boasting its third-straight all-time closing high.
Healthcare and tech stocks helped stoke most of today's growth, while Wall Street looked on to the freshly-inked infrastructure deal in Washington D.C. The agreement was expected to include over $500 billion in new spending above Congress' baseline -- a great deal lower than Democrats' initial spending proposal. Investors also digested a slew of mixed economic data, as the Federal Reserve's annual bank stress test looms, set for release after the close.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 34,196.82) added 322.6 points or almost 1% for the day. Of the 30 Dow components, Boeing (BA) saw the biggest jump, adding 2.9%, while Apple (AAPL) fell to the bottom, shedding 0.2%.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 4,266.49) rose 24.7 points, or 0.6%. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 14,369.71) added almost 98 points, or 0.7% for the day.
Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 15.97) dropped 0.4 point or 2.1%.
GOLD EYES WEEKLY WIN DESPITE DAILY PULLBACK
Oil prices continued to climb today, rising to a two-and-a-half year high as demand for the commodity strengthens. Investors are keeping an eye on the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their Allies (OPEC+) response to this rise in demand, with some expectations that it will soon begin to increase production to match. As a result, the now most-active, August-dated contract added 22 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $73.30 per barrel.
Gold prices fell slightly from yesterday's rally, though they are still clinging to a weekly win. Inflation uncertainty dinged the yellow metal, while reopening optimism is causing some traders to shift away the safe haven and into more high-risk assets. In turn, August-dated gold dropped $6.70, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,776.70 an ounce.
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