Stocks climb on earnings as US yields dip

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A gauge of global equities advanced on Thursday, lifted by a round of solid quarterly earnings in Europe and the United States, while the euro weakened after the head of the European Central Bank hailed “solid” economic growth but kept interest rates unchanged.

On Wall Street, technology stocks jumped 2.35%, led by a 9.73% jump in Facebook Inc. and 4.694.62% rise in Visa after their quarterly results.

Facebook reported a surprisingly strong rise in profit and an increase in users, with no sign that business was hurt by a scandal over the mishandling of users’ personal data. Its shares were on track for their best day since January 2016.

A drop in the 10-year US Treasury yield below the 3% mark also helped equities. Economic data supported the view that the Federal Reserve would stick to its gradual pace of rate increases. Although domestic core capital-goods orders fell in March, filings for jobless benefits plunged to their lowest level in over 48 years.

The 10-year yield on Wednesday reached its highest level since January 2014, at 3.035%.

In afternoon trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 260.4 points, or 1.08%, to 24,344.23, the S&P 500 gained 30.72 points, or 1.16%, to 2,670.12, and the Nasdaq Composite added 123.97 points, or 1.77%, to 7,127.71.