Stocks Climb For 3rd Day After Jobless Claims Fall
Stocks have closed up for a third straight day after a drop in first-time unemployment claims eased concerns about the economy.
The Dow Jones industrial average has risen 121 points Thursday after climbing 275 Wednesday and advancing modestly Tuesday.
The government says initial claims for unemployment benefits fell last week to their lowest levels since early May. Claims fell to 454,000, better than the 465,000 forecast by economists polled by Thomson Reuters.
The Dow is up 121 at 10,139. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 10 at 1,070, while the Nasdaq composite index is up 16 at 2,175.
Four stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume totaled 1.2 billion shares, compared with 1.3 billion Wednesday.
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