US markets rose on good economic data

18 Jan 2013 Evaluate

The US markets surged on Thursday, propelling the S&P 500 index to its highest finish since late 2007 as upbeat jobs and housing reports offered respite from politics and other concerns. House Republicans are mulling the idea of a short-term increase in the US debt ceiling to allow for time to debate reduced government spending. Ryan, who was Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s running mate in 2012, stated that the House GOP is discussing the virtue of a possible short-term debt limit extension. Ryan added that the idea behind the short-term increase is to have a better chance of getting the Senate and the White House involved in discussions in March. On the economy front, the number of applicants for new jobless benefits fell last week to the lowest level since January 2008, but the drop likely stemmed from a beginning-of-the-year quirk whose effects may soon fade and push first-time filings back up. Initial applications for unemployment benefits sank by 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted 335,000 in the week ended January 12, the Labor Department stated.

Besides, construction on new US homes jumped in December to the highest rate in more than four years, with gains across the country, as well as in single-family homes and buildings. In the freshest data signaling a strengthening housing market, starts rose 12.1% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 954,000 - the highest level since June 2008. However, not all the economic news were positive, an index of manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region turned negative in January.  A closely followed index of Philadelphia area manufacturing conditions soured in January as local companies reported fewer new orders and hiring fewer employees. The Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index went negative in January, slipping to -5.8 in January from +4.6 in December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 84.79 points or 0.63 percent to 13,596.00, the Nasdaq added 18.46 points or 0.59 percent to 3,136.00 and the S&P 500 closed higher by 8.31 points or 0.56 percent to 1,480.94.

Indian ADRs closed mostly in green on Thursday, Infosys was up 0.80%, Tata Motors was up 0.79% and Tata Communication was up 0.25%. On the other hand, ICICI Bank was down 0.41% and HDFC Bank was down 0.13%. 

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