Equity Markets Close Higher as Jobless Claims Fall, Fed Official Cautions on Tariffs

04:34 PM EDT, 07/10/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed higher on Thursday after US jobless claims unexpectedly declined, and St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem weighed in on tariffs.

The S&P 500 increased 0.3% to a record 6,280.46, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4% to 44,650.64, and the Nasdaq climbed 0.1% to 20,630.66. Among sectors, consumer discretionary led the gainers, and communications services paced the declines.

US Treasury yields rose with the 10-year rate gaining 0.6 basis points to 4.35% and the two-year rate advancing 2.9 basis points to 3.88%.

August West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 2.1% to $66.91 a barrel.

Musalem said it is too soon to determine whether tariffs will have a persistent impact on inflation, Bloomberg News reported.

"It's going to take time for the tariffs to settle," Musalem said, according to the report. "There's a scenario where we could be in (the fourth quarter) this year, or (the first or second quarter) of next year where tariffs are still working themselves into the economy."

In economic news, US initial jobless claims last week fell to 227,000, down from a revised 232,000 the prior week and below expectations of 235,000, according to a Bloomberg survey.

In company news, United Airlines (UAL) jumped 14%, Delta Air Lines (DAL) climbed 12% and Southwest Airlines (LUV) rose 8.1%, leading gains on the S&P. Delta logged better-than-expected Q2 results as demand trends stabilized, and the company restored earnings guidance for the full year.

Teradyne (TER) shares rose 6.3%. The company's Universal Robots unit is supplying robotic arms for Amazon's (AMZN) new warehouse robot, Vulcan, Hunterbrook Media reported.

Autodesk (ADSK) shares fell 6.9%. The company is mulling a potential acquisition of engineering-software provider PTC (PTC), Bloomberg News reported. PTC shares fell 7.6%.

Gold increased 0.2% to $3,327.30 per troy ounce, and silver gained 2.8% to $37.645 per troy ounce

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.