U.S. stocks were notably higher in early trading on Thursday, with the S&P 500 nearing another all-time peak in the wake of a decision by the Federal Reserve renewing its pledge to keep interest rates low.
The Fed said Wednesday at the conclusion of a two-day policy meeting it would keep interest rates near zero for a "considerable time," language supportive of equities which had been expected by some to be dropped from the statement.
The Dow industrials closed Wednesday at a record high with the S&P coming within a point of its intraday record.
-The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.48% or 82.00 points to 17151.00
-The S&P 500 index advanced 0.38% or 7.50 points to 2001.25
-The NASDAQ Composite Index gained 0.51% or 20.75 points to 4086.00 . As of 10:34 a.m. ET
Treasury notes were declining. Yields on the 2-year Treasury bill and the 10-year Treasury note were up 0.8 and 1.3 basis points to 0.577% and 2.633% respectively.
Data released earlier showed U.S. housing starts and permits fell in August, but upward revisions to the prior month`s data suggested the housing market continued to gradually improve.
Separate data showing a sharp drop in the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits last week suggested the slowdown in job growth last month was probably an anomaly.