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Unemployment claims drop
Stocks rally on jobless-claims report
Initial unemployment claims hit their lowest level since January. Retailers post better-than-expected same-store sales. Cisco CEO sees recovery building.
Posted by Elizabeth Strott on Thursday, November 5, 2009 9:59 AM
Updated at 11:10 a.m. ET
Stocks were surging today as bulls took this morning's economic data as another sign of a recovery.
The Labor Department this morning said initial jobless claims fell 20,000 to 512,000 last week -- the lowest level since January. Economists had been looking for claims to fall to 520,000 from 532,000, revised from 530,000, in the previous week.
And a report on worker productivity in the U.S. showed companies managed to squeeze more output from their employees. Productivity surged at a 9.5% annual rate in the third quarter, the Labor Department reported this morning.
At 11:10 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) had gained 179 points to 9,981. The Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPX) had added 45 points to 2,100, and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) was up 17 points to 1,064.
Initial unemployment claims hit their lowest level since January. Retailers post better-than-expected same-store sales. Cisco CEO sees recovery building.
Posted by Elizabeth Strott on Thursday, November 5, 2009 9:59 AM
Updated at 11:10 a.m. ET
Stocks were surging today as bulls took this morning's economic data as another sign of a recovery.
The Labor Department this morning said initial jobless claims fell 20,000 to 512,000 last week -- the lowest level since January. Economists had been looking for claims to fall to 520,000 from 532,000, revised from 530,000, in the previous week.
And a report on worker productivity in the U.S. showed companies managed to squeeze more output from their employees. Productivity surged at a 9.5% annual rate in the third quarter, the Labor Department reported this morning.
At 11:10 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) had gained 179 points to 9,981. The Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPX) had added 45 points to 2,100, and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) was up 17 points to 1,064.
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