The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 220.75 points, or 0.79 percent, to 28,132.05. The S&P 500 rose 26.94 points, or 0.86 percent, to 3,168.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 63.27 points, or 0.73 percent, to 8,717.32.
Seven of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors climbed, with financials closing up 2 percent, leading the gainers. Real estate decreased 1.45 percent, becoming the worst-performing group.
Wall Street continued to pore through the Federal Reserve's latest decision on monetary policy.
The U.S. central bank decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent after concluding a two-day policy meeting on Wednesday, in line with market expectations.
The Fed said it will continue to monitor the implications of incoming information for the economic outlook as it assesses the appropriate path of the target range for the federal funds rate.
The central bank signaled no immediate appetite for rate hikes, removing the fear of tightening monetary policy among investors, noted experts.
On the data front, in the week ending Dec. 7, U.S. initial jobless claims, a rough way to measure layoffs, jumped 49,000 to 252,000, the Department of Labor reported Thursday. This is the highest level for initial claims since Sept. 30, 2017, said the department.
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