US stocks snap 6-day losing streak

NEW YORK: US stocks recovered from a June swoon Thursday, lifted by an unexpected narrowing of the US trade deficit in April.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 75.42 points (0.63 percent) to end the day at 12,124.36, ending six straight sessions of losses since the month began.

The broader S&P 500 added 9.44 points (0.74 percent) at 1,289.00, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite climbed 9.49 points (0.35 percent) to 2,684.87.

The Dow's first gain of June came after the blue-chip index shed 1.9 percent in May.

"The US stock market is struggling to get out of its current malaise. The good news in the dreary market environment is that US stocks are not under siege and the recent market declines have been modest," said Frederic Dickson at DA Davidson & Co.

The US trade deficit shrank sharply in April to $43.7 billion from $46.8 billion in March amid record exports and a drop in imports as the economy struggled with a weak recovery, official data showed Thursday.

Wall Street bulls shrugged off a rise in new jobless claims, to 427,000 for the week ending June 4, another sign that US businesses are doing very little hiring while government jobs are being cut at the federal and local level.

Financial shares recovered after steadily dropping since the beginning of June under regulatory clouds and the slowing economy.

Bank of America picked up 1.0 percent, Citigroup 2.6 percent, and JPMorgan Chase 1.5 percent.

Chevron added 1.3 percent as crude oil prices rose.

Bonds retreated. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.0 percent from 2.96 percent late Wednesday, while that on the 30-year bond increased to 4.22 percent from 4.21 percent. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011