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NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- Stocks advanced for the sixth straight session Thursday on an upbeat report of a decline in the number of people filing for unemployment benefits. The Dow Jones industrial average added 122.33 points or 0.75 percent to 16,479.88. The DJIA has hit at least 50 records this year and is up more than 24 percent since January.
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The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 8.70 points 0.47 percent to 1,842.02. The Nasdaq composite index of tech-dominated stocks added 11.76 points or 0.28 percent to 4,167.18.
On the New York Stock Exchange, 1,657 issues advanced while 1,439 declined. Trading was light with 1.9 billion shares trading hands. Jobless claims for first-time benefits fell by 42,000 to 338,000 in the week that ended Saturday, the U.S. Labor Department said.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 added 1.03 percent or 164.45 points to 16,174.44. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index added 257.99 points or 1.13 percent to 23,179.55. In Europe, London's FTSE 100 and the French CAC 40 were closed for a holiday break and will reopen Friday.
The 10-year U.S. treasury note briefly rose above 3 percent before falling to 2.996 percent. It lost 3/32.
The euro traded flat at $1.369 and the dollar was slightly higher against the yen at 104.75 yen.
Gold gained $6.70 to $1,200 per troy ounce. Silver added 0.47 cents to $19.930.
Crude oil was up 38 cents to $99.61 per barrel.
On the Chicago Board of Trade, March corn was down 7 3/4 cents to $4.26 3/4 a bushel, January soybeans fell 13 3/4 cents to $13.20 and March wheat dropped 1/4 cents to $6.06.
