U.S. stock markets closed higher on Thursday after a choppy session. Market participants continued to digest a series of newly released economic data. A decline in the yields of the sovereign bonds also boosted investors’ confidence on risky assets like equities. All three major stock indexes ended in positive territory.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.4% or 116.07 points to close at 33,666.34. Notably, 19 components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 11 ended in negative territory. At its intraday low, the blue-chip index was down nearly 77 points. On Sep 26, the index fell below its 200-days moving average for the first time since May, which is known as the long-term support base of any asset class and continued to trade there.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished at 13,201.28, rising 0.8% or 108.43 points due to strong performance of large-cap technology stocks. The major gainer of the index was Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (SIRI Quick QuoteSIRI - Free Report) . Shares of the company jumped 15%. Sirius XM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The S&P 500 gained 0.6% to end at 4,299.70. On Sep 26, the broad-market closed below its crucial support base of 4,300 for the first time since Jun 9. Moreover, the index fell below the key support base of 100-day moving average on Sep 21 for the first time since March and continued to trade there. This indicates possibility of more decline for the index.

10 out of11 broad sectors of the benchmark ended in positive territory while one in negative zone. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC), the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY), the Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) and the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR (XLRE) surged 1.1%, 1.1%, 1.1% and 1%. On the other hand, the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) tumbled 2.2%

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 4.8% to 17.34. A total of 10.7 billion shares were traded on Thursday, higher than the last 20-session average of 10.3 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.2-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.5-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.

Decline in Yields of U.S. Government Bonds

The yield on the benchmark 10-Year U.S. Treasury Note declined to 4.585% from 4.612%. The yield on the short-term 2-Year U.S. Treasury Note fell to 5.073% from 5.139%. The yield on the long-term 30-Year U.S. Treasury Note also decreased to 4.715%. A higher risk-free market interest rate is detrimental to stock investing as it raises the discount rate thereby reducing the net present value of equities.

Economic Data

The Department of Labor reported that weekly jobless claims increased by 2,000 to 204,000 for the week ended Sep 23, lower-than the consensus estimate of 214,000. Previous week’s data was revised upward to 202,000 from 201,000 reported earlier. Continuing claims — people who already received government unemployment benefit and run a week behind the headline number — came in at 1.67 million for the week ended Sep 16, an increase of 12,000 from the previous week.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported in its third and final estimate that the U.S. economy grew at 2.1% in second-quarter 2023, missing the consensus estimate of 2.3%. Disposable personal increased 6.1% to $296.5 billion. Personal savings rate increased to 5.2%. Profits from current production came in at $6.9 billion.

PCE price index decreased to 2.5% from 2.6% reported earlier. The Core (excluding volatile items like food and energy) PCE price index – the Fed’s favorite inflation gauge – dropped marginally to 3.7% from 3.8% reported earlier.

The National Association of REALTORS reported that pending home sales slumped 7.1% month-over-month in August. The consensus estimate was for a drop of 1%. The metric increased 0.9% in July.