Stocks Opened Higher; Facebook Jumped

U.S. stocks opened mostly higher on Thursday on the back of upbeat earnings and the report that weekly jobless claims came in far better than expected. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately added 14.42 points, or 0.08%, to 17,101.05. The S&P 500 was up 1.98 points, or 0.10%, to 1,988.99. The Nasdaq Composite gained 4.31 points, or 0.10%, to 4,478.01.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in nearly 8-1/2 years last week, suggesting the labor market recovery was gaining traction. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 284,000 for the week ended July 19, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

Facebook (FB) posted its fifth straight better-than-expected quarter. The metrics were beyond reproach. Revenues grew 61%, earnings more than doubled.

U.S. authorities’ $8.9 billion settlement last month with French bank BNP Paribas for sanctions busting will pay for New York cops to get live computer feeds of street crime and for new carpets in the offices of prosecutors, among many other things.

Wages may be growing at a faster clip than envisaged by U.S. policymakers, with a recent raft of business surveys showing an increase in the number of companies raising compensation. One closely watched wage growth measure, a gauge produced by the National Federation for Independent Business, has reached a seven-year high.