U.S. stocks closed higher Thursday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell calmed investor fears about higher inflation leading to central-bank tightening.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, 0.41% added 56 points, 0.2%, to close near 33,502. The S&P 500 SPX, 0.35% added 17 points, 0.4%, to close near 4,097, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite COMP, 0.14% surged 1%, 140 points, to touch 13,829. 10-year Treasury yields have stopped climbing higher, despite signs of a strengthening economy, Arone said. “That’s given investors a bit of relief,” he added and helped to boost technology stocks again. On Thursday, Powell repeated his belief that a rise in inflation this year would be temporary, keeping the Fed’s easy-money policies in place for the near term.