Shares of industrial and transportation companies rose after mixed economic data.
The U.S. trade deficit widened during the lockdown as imports decreased 14% in April, but exports fell an even more pronounced 21% from March.
The ranks of Americans drawing on unemployment benefits ticked up to 21.5 million in the week ended May 23, though the pace of increase significantly slowed from earlier in the crisis, the Labor Department said Thursday. The jobless claims could be consistent with a gradual turnaround in the jobs market, economists said.
An infrastructure plan under consideration in the House of Representatives may modestly increase growth potential for companies that build U.S. highways such as Irish building materials supplier CRH, according to analysts at brokerage Morgan Stanley, in a note to clients.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com
