On closing, the major indexes on Wall Street closed higher – the Dow Industrials average up 0.34 percent, NASDAQ composite index up by more than half a percent, and the broader S and P 500 index was also up 0,52 percent on closing, Wednesday.
Oil surged to new record levels close to $105 a barrel before steadying in Asian trading Thursday on word that supplies were dwindling.
Also in the news, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are scheduled to hold meetings on interest rates Thursday – but market participants are not expecting a rate cut this time around with inflation continuing to climb in the Euro zone and the single currency, Euro, appreciating faster than expected and not to mention concerns about dwindling growth, reports The Associated Press.