US stocks close higher before release of key job figures

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) – US stocks closed higher Thursday ahead of job figures that are closely watched by the Federal Reserve.

The Dow was up 346 points, or 1.12% to close at 31,384.

The S&P rose by 57 points, or 1.5%, to 3,902 -- the index’s fourth consecutive daily gain.

The Nasdaq jumped almost 260 points, or 2.3%, to finish at 11,621.

The Labor Department will reveal new job figures and unemployment data Friday.

The Fed has said it will support a more restrictive stance in monetary policy if high inflation persists, according to minutes released Wednesday from its last meeting June 15 when it raised interest rates by 75 basis points.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, fell 3.3% to 25.85.

The dollar index was flat at 107.07 after soaring to a 20-year high of 107.15 on Wednesday.

The 10-year US Treasury added 3.3% to 3.007%.

Precious metals recovered from the previous day’s losses as gold added 0.1% to $1,740 and silver rose 0.1% to $19.23.

After plummeting more than 8% Tuesday, crude prices jumped more than 3%.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading at $104.19 per barrel for a 3.5% gain, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was at $102.31, up 3.8%.

Both benchmarks hit their lowest level since May 11 on Tuesday.