US markets end higher on Thursday led by positive earnings

02 May 2025 Evaluate

The US markets closed higher on Thursday with the tech-heavy Nasdaq ending the session at its best closing level in over a month. The up-move came on Wall Street amid investors reacting to upbeat earnings news from software giant Microsoft (MSFT) and Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META). The shares of Microsoft and Meta Platforms soared by 7.6 percent and 4.2 percent respectively after reported better than expected earnings. However, buying interest waned as the session progressed after traders digested some disappointing U.S. economic data, including a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by much more than expected in the week ended April 26th. Besides, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) also released a report showing a slight decrease by its reading on U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of April. The ISM said that its manufacturing PMI edged down to 48.7 in April after slipping to 49.0 in March, with a reading below 50 indicating contraction. Street had expected the index to dip to 48.0.

On sectoral front, significant strength has been seen among networking stocks with NYSE Arca Networking Index surging 4.2 percent. The oil service stocks also moved sharply higher amid a rebound by the price of crude oil, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index jumping by 2.6 percent.

Nasdaq jumped 264.40 points or 1.52 percent to 17,710.74, S&P500 climbed 35.08 points or 0.63 percent to 5,604.14, and Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 83.60 points or 0.21 percent to 40,752.96.

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