By Jessica Menton -
This story was updated at 9:50 a.m. EDT
U.S. stocks opened higher Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 100 points after the European Central Bank (ECB) kept benchmark interest rates unchanged, hovering at historic lows. Investors also weighed jobless claims data ahead of the all-important employment report for August, due out Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) gained more than 100 points, or 0.7 percent, to 16,466. The Standard & Poor's 500 index (INDEXSP:.INX) rose 16 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,965. And the Nasdaq composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) added 30 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,781.
The gains Thursday came after the ECB downgraded its inflation forecast, leaving the door open to extend and expand its bond-buying program beyond 2016.
“We will fully implement our monthly asset purchases of 60 billion euros,” ECB President Mario Draghi said during a press conference. “They are intended to run until the end of September 2016 or beyond, if necessary, and, in any case, until we see a sustained adjustment in the path of inflation that is consistent with our aim of achieving inflation rates below but close to 2 percent over the medium term."
Following the press conference, the euro fell around 1 percent against the U.S. dollar. Meanwhile, European stocks across the board traded higher, with the Euro Stoxx 600 index up by 2 percent. Meanwhile, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index snapped a four-day losing streak, edging up 0.5 percent.
The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, as initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 282,000 for the week ended Aug. 29, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists had forecast claims rising to 275,000 last week.
However, economists say the underlying trend remained consistent with a strengthening labor market. The last time claims have been this low for a half-year was in 1973, when the labor force was much smaller.
“Firms are laying off few workers, and those who do lose their jobs are finding new work quickly,” Gus Faucher, senior macro economist at PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC), said in a research note.
Economists are looking ahead to Friday’s highly anticipated employment report. The U.S. unemployment rate is forecast to tick down to 5.2 percent in August from the 5.3 percent in July. Economists forecast nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 220,000 last month after rising 215,000 in July, according to a analysts polled by Reuters.
Oil prices traded flat Thursday morning, a day after data showed stockpiles increased more than expected last week. West Texas Intermediate crude, the benchmark for U.S. oil prices, edged up 0.2 percent to $46.36 per barrel for October delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On the London ICE Futures Exchange, Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices, ticked up 0.04 percent to $50.52.
U.S. stocks closed sharply higher Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average soaring nearly 300 points, rebounding a day after Wall Street recorded its worst start to September in 13 years.