The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 16,000 for the first time Thursday, after a government report showed a decline in job losses.
The Dow industrials halted a three-day skid, gaining 109.17 points, or 0.7 per cent, for a record close of 16,009.6.
Earlier, the Bureau of Labour Statistics reported that first-time unemployment insurance claims had declined last week by 21,000 to 323,000, the lowest level since September.