S&P 500 closes at record as investors weigh encouraging labor-market data and stimulus prospects

• The S&P 500 closed at a record high Thursday as investors weighed encouraging jobless claims and stimulus prospects.
• Dating app Bumble soared 85% on its first day of public trading.
• Federal regulators are probing the GameStop trading phenomenon, the Wall Street Journal reported.
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The S&P 500 closed at a new high on Thursday as investors hoped the labor market could be turning a corner and remained optimistic for a large federal stimulus package.

New jobless claims reached an unadjusted 793,000 for the week that ended Saturday, the Labor Department said. That missed economist estimates the foresaw filings totaling 760,000, but was a five-week low.

"With Covid cases and hospitalizations plummeting, the economy is now starting to re-open, albeit very slowly and patchily, but the direction of travel is clear," said Ian Shepherdson, Pantheon Macroeconomics Chief Economist. "The seasonal patterns suggest that claims likely dip only slightly over the next few weeks, but the dominant force as the spring arrives will be the fading of Covid and the reopening."

Speaker Nancy Pelosi doubled down on pushing Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion package through by early March before enhanced unemployment insurance lapses.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. ET close on Thursday:

• S&P 500: 3,916.37, up 0.17%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 31,430.70, down 0.02% (7.10 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 14,025.77, up 0.38 %

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Dating app Bumble surged as much as 85% on Thursday as shares publicly traded hands for the first time following the company's initial public offering.

Fidelity Investments cashed in its GameStop shares amid the stock's meteoric rise in January. The company sold all but 87 shares according to regulatory filings posted on Jan. 29. Fidelity had been the largest shareholder in GameStop at one time, owning 9.3 million shares, or 13% of the company, as of Dec. 31.

Federal regulators and prosecutors are probing the GameStop trading phenomenon, The Wall Street Journal reported. Authorities are investigating whether the army of Reddit traders partook in market manipulation.

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US stocks so far in 2021 have performed at their strongest pace in nearly 10 years relative to the bond market, buoyed by anticipation of further recovery in the world's largest economy after taking a hit from the COVID-19 health crisis, Accoring to Bespoke Investment Group. The S&P 500 rose by 4% as 2021 started versus a 5% loss in bonds.

A supercycle in commodities is about to take place and investors can benefit by increasing their exposure to energy stocks, JPMorgan said in a note on Wednesday.

Oil prices were lower. West Texas Intermediate crude fell as 1.36%, to $57.88 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, was down 1.07%, to $60.81 per barrel, at intraday lows.

Gold fell 0.89%, to $1,826.20 per ounce.

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