US stocks resume upward push as market digests tax cut

NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks rose early Thursday, lifted by passage of a massive US tax cut bill that has led analysts to predict further stock market gains in 2018.

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 24,797.94, up 0.3 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.2 percent to 2,685.14, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.2 percent to 2,685.14.

The early gains reversed a two-day pullback ahead of the holiday period during which trading volumes are expected to be light.

Credit Suisse became the latest large bank to upgrade its stock market projections, lifting its 2018 forecast for the S&P 500 to 3,000 from the prior 2,875.

"Much -- but not all -- of the tax-related benefits to (earnings) are likely reflected in stock prices already," the Credit Suisse note said.

"As such, we expect the market's advance to be fueled by underlying profit growth plus modest multiple expansion."

In economic data, the Commerce Department trimmed its estimate for third-quarter growth by a tenth of a percentage point to a still-robust 3.2 percent.

US jobless claims jumped 20,000 to 245,000 last week, snapping a streak of four consecutive weeks of declines, according to Labor Department data, but remained near historic lows.