Wall Street is navigating another quiet session characterized by low trading volumes in the post-holiday period. The S&P 500 index continues its gradual ascent toward retesting its all-time highs, edging up by just 0.1% as of midday trading in New York.

The Nasdaq 100 is mirroring this performance while achieving a significant milestone, boasting a 55% gain since the beginning of the year. This marks its best-performing year since 1999.

Blue-chip stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher. Small-cap stocks, on the other hand, are taking a breather. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) is down 0.3% after enjoying a 14% rise since the start of the month.

On the data front, weekly jobless claims have increased from 206,000 to 218,000, slightly surpassing the expected figure of 210,000.

Treasury yields have seen minor upticks of approximately 3 basis points across the yield curve. This modest increase has interrupted the fixed-income rally, causing the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:TLT) to decline by 0.6%.

Gold has remained relatively stable, priced at $2,075 per ounce, while crude oil, tracked by the United States Oil Fund (NYSE:USO), has fallen by 1%.

Thursday’s Performance In US Major Indices, ETFs

Sector-wise, the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) outperforms, up by 0.5%. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) lags behind, down 0.8%.

Among industries, the Invesco Solar ETF (NYSE:TAN) gains 1%, while the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDX) falls 1.5%.

Thursday’s Stock Movers

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