S&P Inches Toward All-Time High

Stocks advanced on Thursday as the S&P 500 was within striking distance its all-time highs set earlier in the year.

The Dow Jones Industrials zoomed 305.58 points to 43,288.11.

The much-broader index climbed 41.34 points to 6,133.50.

The NASDAQ Composite tacked on 148.3 points to 20,121.86.

The S&P 500 traded about 0.3% below its intraday record high of 6,147.43 reached in February. It’s also near its closing all-time high of 6,144.15.

The index has jumped more than 20% since hitting a closing low in April at the peak of the U.S. tariff scare. Trade pressures have eased since then, but some on Wall Street are skeptical that the recent market momentum will carry on.

Initial jobless claims for the week ending June 21 pulled back to 236,000, which was below the 244,000-job consensus estimate. The data is indicative of a still-strong economy that seems to be holding up.

Tensions in the Middle East seemed to ease after Trump said Tuesday that a ceasefire between Israel and Iran was in effect. Though the president accused both countries of violating the agreement, saying he’s “not happy” with either of them, the deal has since appeared to hold. The U.S. is planning to meet with Iran next week.

Prices for the 10-year treasury were static, keeping the yield at 4.28%.

Oil prices gained 90 cents to $65.82 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices lost $5.60 to $3,337.50 U.S. an ounce.