US markets closed in green on Thursday driven by a strong rally in semiconductor stocks after Micron announced a $250 billion AI-focused investment plan, offsetting concerns over escalating US-Iran tensions. Traders took support with the Labor Department released a report showing that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the US fell by 2,000 to 215,000 on the week to July 4, below expectations that it would rise to 218,000. Additionally, continuing claims, which are seen as a gauge of outstanding unemployment in the US, rose by 8,000 to 1,814,000 in the last full week of June, the highest since late March but below expectations of 1,820,000. Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors reportshowed that existing home sales in the United States fell by 2.4% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 4.09 million units in June of 2026, firmly below expectations that they would hold steady at 4.20 million. Sales fell in the South (-3.6% to 1.89 million), the Midwest (-3.0% to 0.98 million), and the West (-1.3% to 0.74 million), offsetting an increase in the Northeast (2.1% to 0.48 million).
Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 139.02 points or 0.27 percent to 52,487.41, S&P 500 increased 60.93 points or 0.81 percent to 7,543.64, and Nasdaq increased 336.23 points or 1.3 percent to 26,206.89.
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