Dow tops 16,000 at close -- a first

NEW YORK, Nov. 21 (UPI) -- The Dow Jones industrial average, which has been setting records with regularity this year, closed at more than 16,000 for the first time Thursday.

The Dow added 109.17 points or 0.69 percent to finish at 16,009.99, its 40th record finish this year and extending a rally that promises the best year in a decade.

The gains came as Janet Yellen's confirmation as the new head of the Federal Reserve took a step forward with Senate committee approval. Also contributing was a better than expected jobs report that saw first-time claims fall by 21,000.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 gained 14.48 points or 0.81 percent to close at 1,795.85 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 47.88 or 1.22 percent to 3,969.15.

On the New York Stock Exchange 2,294 issues advanced and 804 declined on trading volume of 3.227 billion shares.

In Europe, the London FTSE was flat, adding just 0.25 point to close at 6,681.33, while the German DAX fell 5.99 points or 0.07 percent to 9,196.08 and the French CAC dipped 14.47 points or 0.34 percent to 4,253.90. In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 soared 289.52 points or 1.92 percent to 15,365.60 but the Hong Kong Heng Seng shed 120.57 points or 0.51 percent to 23,580.29 and China's Shanghai Composite lost 0.85 points or 0.04 percent to 2,205.77.

The 10-year treasury note gained 4/32 while the yield dropped to 2.789 percent.

The euro fell to $1.3471 while the dollar rose to 101.31 yen.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, Gold rose 0.02 percent to $1,243.90 per troy ounce while silfer gained 0.22 percent to $20.02.

Crude oil fell 18 cents to $95.26 on NYMex.

At the Chicago Board of Trade December corn rose 6 to $4.32 a bushel, while January soybeans added 17 3/4 to $12.91 1/2 and December finished up 1 1/2 to $6.49 3/4.