On Thursday, stocks on Wall Street gained strongly after fairly strong labor data eased fears of a sharp slowdown in the economy of the largest economy in the world.
The NASDAQ Composite rose 200 points, or 1.2%, the S&P 500 climbed 54 points, or 1%, and the dow jones Industrial Average rose 268 points, or 0.7%.
Thursday’s data showed the number of Americans filing initial applications for unemployment benefits was at 233K for the week that ended on August 3.
This was lower than the 241K expected and less than the revised 250K the previous week, which was the highest in 11 months.
Over the past few weeks, the main Wall Street indices have recorded steep losses, and the NASDAQ entered correction territory on increasing recession fears after a slew of weak readings on business activity and the labor market.
JPMorgan has increased the probability of a U.S. recession by the end of the year from 25% to 35%, citing labor market pressures easing.
This came after a weak monthly jobs report, with only 114K jobs created in July.
On Thursday, comments by Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin will also be watched for any cues on the next move by the U.S. central bank.
On Thursday there will be more earnings to evaluate.
