NEW YORK - Wall Street stocks finished solidly higher on Thursday , with traders looking past another spike in jobless claims caused by the coronavirus and instead focusing on the gradual reopening of the US economy.The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 1.2 per cent to close at 2,881.19, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.4 per cent to 8,979.66.
The data came ahead of Friday's potentially historic April jobs report, which will provide the most comprehensive accounting thus far of the devastation in the labour market following the shutdowns. "Investors are looking forward to a reopening of the economy and they are looking past Covid-19," said Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investments.