Stocks Rallied at the Open

U.S. stocks opened higher on Thursday, with the S&P 500 hitting a record high , helped by a bounce back in technology stocks and relief that fresh U.S. and China tariffs were less damaging than feared. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 199.47 points, or 0.76%, to 26,605.23. The S&P 500 gained 14.67 points, or 0.50%, to 2,922.62. The Nasdaq Composite added 59.29 points, or 0.75%, to 8,009.33.

Oil futures turned lower early Thursday after President Donald Trump in a tweet called for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to maintain lower crude-oil prices. October West Texas Intermediate crude added 6 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $70.80 a barrel. November Brent gave up an early gain to fall 31 cents, or 0.4%, to reach $79.09 a barrel.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, hitting near a 49-year low in a sign the job market remains strong. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted level of 201,000 for the week ended Sept. 15, the Labor Department said on Thursday.