US stocks opened higher on Thursday after the world's largest economy grew at 3% annualised pace in the June quarter and weekly jobless claims fell more than expected, pointing to a steady labour market.
The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average gained over 200 points, or 0.7%, to 42,195, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.4% to 18,327.
The S&P 500 advanced 0.8% to 5,767, a new high. Seven of the 11 sectoral indices were trading in green, with information technology, industrials and telecom seeing gains. While energy and real estate led declines.
Among major companies, shares of Micron Technologies Inc. surged 18% after issuing strong earnings guidance for the current quarter. It also led to momentum in other semiconductor-linked stocks.
Accenture Plc stock gained over 5% after fourth quarter profit beat estimates. The company has projected 3-6% revenue growth for next year.
Oil companies like Exxon Mobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips dropped 2%.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis' third estimate for US GDP in the second quarter remained unchanged, reflecting an annualised growth rate of 3%, compared to economists' expectations of 2.9%.
Additionally, data from the US Labor Department revealed that 2,18,000 unemployment claims were filed for the week ending Sept. 21, falling short of forecast of 2,23,000. This figure marks the lowest level of weekly claims since mid-May, as per reports.
The economic data comes a week after the US Federal Reserve lowered interest rates by half a percentage point with Chairman Jerome Powell describing the economy as being in "good shape."
The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond was flat at 3.77%.
The US dollar wavered against major currencies. The Bloomberg Dollar Index was down 0.4% at 1,221.04.
Spot gold prices gained 1% to $2,685.58 an ounce, a new record.
International benchmark Brent oil dropped nearly 4% to $70.72 per barrel.
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