NEW YORK - Wall Street barreled higher Thursday after a better-than-expected reading on the gross domestic product and a drop in jobless claims gave investors some reassurance that the economy is holding up. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 200 points.
GDP and jobless-claim data push up Dow 212
August 29, 2008 at 4:58AM
A decline in oil prices also appeared to add force to the rally in stocks. But trading volume was again light heading toward the Labor Day weekend, a condition that can skew price moves.
The Commerce Department's report that gross domestic product rose at an annual rate of 3.3 percent for the April-June period followed several economic readings this week that have left investors somewhat optimistic. The weaker dollar helped boost U.S. exports, which pushed GDP growth beyond the government's initial estimate of 1.9 percent as well as economists' forecast of 2.7 percent.
It was the economy's best performance since the third quarter of 2007, when GDP rose at a 4.8 percent pace.
The Dow rose 212.67, or 1.85 percent, to 11,715.18, bringing its three-day rise to nearly 330 points; it had started the week with a 241-point loss Monday.
Broader stock indicators also rose Thursday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 19.02, or 1.48 percent, to 1,300.68, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 29.18, or 1.22 percent, to 2,411.64.
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