Major Averages Close Just Off Best Levels Of The Day

(RTTNews) - After fluctuating throughout much of the session, stocks showed a strong move to the upside in afternoon trading on Thursday. The late-day rally helped the markets recover from the sell-off that was seen over the course of the two previous sessions.

Airline stocks performed well throughout much of the trading session, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 2.9 percent. With the gain, the index climbed back toward the twelve-year closing high it set on Monday.

JetBlue (JBLU) helped to lead the sector higher, with the discount airline soaring by 8.8 percent after reporting better than expected fourth quarter earnings.

Considerable strength also emerged among housing stocks, as reflected by the 2.1 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. Meritage Homes (MTH) posted a standout gain after reporting fourth quarter earnings that exceeded analyst estimates.

Software stocks also saw significant strength on the day, regaining some ground after helping to lead the markets lower in the two previous sessions. The Dow Jones Software Index surged up by 1.5 percent, bouncing off a three-month closing low.

Financial, chemical, and utilities stocks also moved notably higher over the course of the trading day, while weakness remained visible among telecom, oil service, and gold stocks.

The major averages ended the session just off their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 225.48 points or 1.3 percent to 17,416.85, the Nasdaq surged up 45.41 points or 1 percent to 4,683.41 and the S&P 500 advanced 19.09 points or 1 percent to 2,021.25.