Nasdaq Jumps To New All-Time Intraday High

(RTTNews) - Extending the upward move seen over the course of the two previous sessions, stocks have moved sharply higher during trading on Thursday. With the gains on the day, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has reached a new record intraday high.

Biotechnology stocks are posting particularly strong gains on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up by 3.1 percent. With the gain, the index has reached its best intraday level in almost three months.

BioMarin (BMRN) has helped to lead the biotech sector higher, jumping by 12.7 percent after reporting positive results from a study of its treatment for dwarfism.

Significant strength has also emerged among transportation stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones Transportation Average. Alaska Air (ALK), Avis Budget Group (CAR), and Ryder (R) are posting notable gains.

Most of the other major sectors have also moved notably higher on the day, with considerable strength visible among health care, semiconductor, and retail stocks.

However, oil service stocks continue to buck the uptrend, resulting in a 1.5 percent drop by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index. The weakness in the sector comes despite an increase by the price of crude oil.

The major averages have moved roughly sideways in recent trading, hovering near their best levels of the day. The Dow is up 196.82 points or 1.1 percent at 18,132.56, the Nasdaq is up 69.43 points or 1.4 percent at 5,134.22 and the S&P 500 is up 20.70 points or 1 percent at 2,121.14.