Retail stocks rose to the top of investors' shopping list for Thanksgiving as an improving picture for US growth dominated trading on Wall Street.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 150.91 points, or 1.4%, to 11,187.28 at the close (10am NZ time), impro
Retail stocks rose to the top of investors’ shopping list for Thanksgiving as an improving picture for US growth dominated trading on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 150.91 points, or 1.4%, to 11,187.28 at the close (10am NZ time), improving on the 142 points lost on Tuesday.
The S&P 500 index was up 1.5% to 1198.35 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.9% to 2543.12.
The gains were led by a surge in consumer discretionary and technology stocks, after the latest data showed consumers more upbeat on spending.
The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index's rose to 71.6 in November, up from 67.7 last month, topping expectations.
The labour market is also on the mend, with the number of US workers filing new claims for jobless benefits falling more than expected last week to the lowest level since July 2008.
US markets will be closed on Thursday and open for just half a day on Friday.
Other markets: Europe up, Asia mixed
European stocks rose as positive economic data refreshed a market battered by concerns over euro-zone sovereign debt and tensions on the Korean peninsula.
In Germany, the business climate index improved unexpectedly in November. Also adding to the positive tone, UK third-quarter growth was left unchanged at 0.8%, with figures showing net trade contributed around half the quarter's growth.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index recently traded 0.7% higher at 265.32. London's FTSE 100 Index was up 0.7% at 5620.43, Frankfurt's DAX rose 1.2% to 6784.22 and Paris' CAC-40 Index was 0.5% higher at 3742.69.
Asian markets were mixed with the Tokyo and Seoul markets finishing lower but staging recoveries from early selloffs on hopes the tensions in Korea will be short-lived.
Offshore investors seized the opportunity to buy depressed stocks and picked up 19.4 billion won (US$16.9 million) of shares,
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average closed down 0.8% at 10,030.11, though it fell as much as 2.1% during the session. Seoul's Kospi Composite ended 0.2% lower at 1925.98 after losing as much as 2.4%.
The Shanghai Composite Index closed up 1.1% at 2859.94, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.6% 23,023.86, Taiwan's main index lost 0.4% to 8297.05 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.1% to 4584.65.
Commodities: Oil up, gold down
Oil futures extended early gains as a modest rise in weekly US inventories calmed worries about a much larger increase.
Light, sweet crude for January delivery was up $US1.79, or 2.2%, at $US83.03 a barrel in New York. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded $US1.82 higher at $US85.07.
Gold futures were near steady as traders looked for direction in quiet trading. The most actively traded contract, for December delivery, was down 0.2%, or $US2.70, at $US1374.90 an ounce in New York.
Commodity markets are expected to remain quiet until they resume next week after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
Currencies: Euro up, yen down
The euro recovered from two-month lows against the dollar as improved US economic data provided relief from euro-zone debt problems.
The euro rebounded from $US1.3284 earlier in the global session when Standard & Poor's cut its long-term and short-term sovereign ratings for Ireland.
The rating agency's move reflected deepening concerns about heavily indebted euro-zone nations.
The dollar gained against the yen as tensions in Korea pushed traders toward the greenback.
The euro was at $US1.3384 from $US1.3370 late on Tuesday. The dollar was at ¥83.31 from Y83.17, while the euro was at ¥111.51 from ¥111.19.
The UK pound was at $US1.5795 from $US1.5782. The dollar was at 0.9939 Swiss franc from 0.9972.
