U.S. stocks surged Thursday, extending a post-election rally, on hopes the winners of the U.S. presidential and congressional contests would be determined soon, with shares of major technology-related companies leading gains. In U.S. economic news, jobless claims declined slightly to 751,000 last week, an extremely high level indicating that widespread layoffs continue. Productivity increased a strong 4.9 percent in the third quarter, but was slower than the more than 10 percent productivity jump in the second quarter. The U.S. dollar fell to a two-week low versus a basket of currencies as surging stock markets reduced demand for the U.S. currency, and as the Federal Reserve (Fed) maintained its loose monetary policy. Gold jumped to a six-week high as growing prospects of a Biden victory in a close U.S. election lifted hopes for larger fiscal stimulus. Futures surged 2.9 percent to $1,951.80 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil fell, ending a three-session winning streak, on the steady increase in coronavirus cases and continuing uncertainty surrounding the U.S. presidential election. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures declined 36 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $38.79 a barrel. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 542.58, or 1.95 percent, to 28,390.24. Twenty-eight of the index's 30 components climbed, led by Dow Inc. and Caterpillar, which jumped 5.4 and 5.1 percent, respectively. J.P. Morgan Chase surged 4.1 percent, and five other Dow members gained more than 3 percent. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 67.01, or 1.95 percent, to 3,510.45. General Motors (GM) surged 5.4 percent on better-than-expected quarterly profit. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 300.125, or 2.6 percent, to 11,890.93. Qualcomm jumped 12.8 percent on better-than-expected quarterly profit. Apple gained 3.6 percent, Netflix advanced 3.4 percent, Amazon and Facebook each climbed 2.5 percent, and Google-parent Alphabet added 1 percent.
