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New York - US shares resumed their rally on Thursday as the market was energised by an earnings report from aluminum maker Alcoa showing a surprise return to profit.
The Alcoa report, the first from a blue-chip firm for the third quarter, offered hope that companies are regaining health as the economy improves.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 59.10 points (0.61%) to 9 784.68 at the closing bell as Wall Street followed a rally in overseas markets.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 13.26 points (0.63%) to 2 123.59 and the broad Standard & Poor's 500 index increased 7.55 points (0.71%) to a preliminary close of 1 065.13.
Patrick O'Hare at Briefing.com said Alcoa's report "kicked more than a few short sellers in the mouth as the aluminum maker said mostly all the right things".
The company said its net income was $77m or eight cents a share in the quarter ended September, after three losing quarters, surprising analysts who had expected a fourth straight quarterly loss.
O'Hare said Alcoa also offered an upbeat outlook for aluminum consumption, another sign of an improving global economy.
"Don't call attention to the fact that demand is still nowhere what it used to be," he said. "Instead, emphasize that there is growth now from a very depressed base."
The market was also encouraged by news that initial claims for US jobless benefits in the week ended October 3 fell to a nine-month low of 521 000, another encouraging sign.
The report "reaffirms that labor market conditions are improving," said Michael Bratus at Moody's Economy.com.
- AFP