Stocks Opened Higher after Fed Minutes

U.S. stocks opened higher on Thursday after minutes of the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting showed policymakers expected the economy to pick up momentum and that they would raise interest rates soon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 73.35 points, or 0.35%, to 21,085.77. The S&P 500 gained 8.06 points, or 0.34%, to 2,412.45. The Nasdaq Composite added 24.00 points, or 0.39%, to 6,187.02.

Oil prices moved sharply lower on Thursday after members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed on a nine-month extension to their output accord, but stopped short of taking on deeper production cuts. West Texas Intermediate for July delivery slumped 78 cents, or 1.5%, to $50.58. Brent crude was off 73 cents, or 1.4%, at $53.24 a barrel.

OPEC decided on Thursday to extend cuts in oil output by nine months to March 2018, OPEC delegates said, as the producer group battles a global glut of crude after seeing prices halve and revenues drop sharply in the past three years.

Best Buy Co. got a boost from Mario and Luigi in the first quarter, as demand for Nintendo Co.’s new Switch game console helped the retailer post a surprise sales gain. Comparable-store sales rose 1.6 percent, the company said on Thursday.

Sears Holdings Corp (SHLD) reported its first quarterly profit in nearly two years, as the retailer benefited from the sale of its Craftsman brand and a program to cut $1.25 billion in costs, amid doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern. Net income attributable to Sears’ shareholders was $244 million, or $2.28 per share, compared with a loss of $471 million, or $4.41 per share, a year earlier. Revenue fell 20.3 percent to $4.30 billion.