Wall Street closed higher on Thursday, driven by tech and industrial stocks. Investors continued to brush aside worries over the U.S. government shutdown, now in its second day.All three benchmark indexes finished in the green.
How Did the Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) climbed 0.2%, or 78.62 points, to close at 46,519.72. Sixteen components of the 30-stock index ended in negative territory, while 14 ended in positive.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 88.89 points, or 0.4%, to close at 22,844.05.
The S&P 500 gained 4.15 points, or 0.1%, to close at 6,715.35. Three of the 11 broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green. The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB), the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) and the Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI) advanced 1.2%, 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) fell 1%.
The fear gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) increased 2.1% to 16.63. A total of 18.77 billion shares were traded on Thursday, lower than the last 20-session average of 18.83 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners by a 1.16-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and 1.37-to-1 on the Nasdaq.
Wall Street Shrugs Off Second Day of U.S. Government Shutdown
Wall Street showed resilience on Thursday as investors continued to shrug off concerns surrounding the U.S. government shutdown, which entered its second day after lawmakers failed to reach a funding agreement. Despite the political stalemate that has halted many nonessential government functions, market sentiment remained steady, suggesting that traders view the impasse as more of a short-term disruption than a major economic threat.
The shutdown has forced hundreds of thousands of federal employees into furlough or unpaid work, raising questions about the potential impact on consumer spending and overall economic momentum. However, equity markets appeared largely unbothered, with investors continuing to focus on corporate earnings, interest rate expectations and broader economic data rather than political gridlock in Washington.
Markets have historically treated government shutdowns as temporary events, with little long-term effect on stock performance. The greater risk, they argue, lies in an extended impasse that could begin to weigh on growth if spending delays ripple through the economy. Still, confidence in underlying market fundamentals and the Fed’s policy outlook helped cushion investor nerves.
While uncertainty in Washington remains, the relatively muted reaction highlights Wall Street’s ability to look beyond short-term political turbulence. For now, investors seem willing to bet that a resolution will eventually be reached, keeping attention firmly on economic signals and corporate fundamentals rather than the latest developments in Congress. Materials and tech stocks led the markets gains in the session.
Consequently, shares of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD and Nucor Corporation NUE jumped 3.5% and 2.7%, respectively. Both currently carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Economic Data
No economic data was released on Thursday due to the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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