NEW YORK (Reuters - The Dow Jones Industrial Average surpassed 40,000 points for the first time on Thursday, the blue-chip index's fastest 10,000 point-climb, powered by strong quarterly results and rising bets of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

MARKET REACTION:

STOCKS: The Dow was last up 0.3% at 40,025.6. The S&P and Nasdaq were up as well.BONDS: U.S. 10-year yields were flat at 4.357%FOREX: The dollar index was last up 0.3% at 104.49.

COMMENTS:

JUAN PEREZ, DIRECTOR OF TRADING, MONEX USA, WASHINGTON

"Clearly the economy is in a bit of a disconnect with a lot of dissatisfaction across sectors, yet companies having great earnings seasons and the Fed's tightening cycle not denting the economy as reflected in this historic achievement for equities."

"While the dollar has gained off of its attractive interest rates, it has brought in a lot more attention from global investors who lost faith in China as a source of global prosperity. America's steadiness post-pandemic has been rewarded as well as the long-term investor who felt the earth shake as the shutdowns in productivity put speculation in the back-burner."

"We have survived the worst of a strange period, but the thriving has been uneven and while new technologies may continue bringing in value to companies, real growth will come when education, technology, and government catch up and get on the same page. Once that happens, there could be immense room for growth since the push for economic technological advancement will also have critical national security components to it. Good for those who held on throughout the turbulence."

(Compiled by the Global Finance & Markets Breaking News team)