Stocks rose in afternoon trading on Thursday, rebounding from steep declines from earlier in the session after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a military invasion into Ukraine overnight.
The S&P 500 trading 1.5% higher, after falling more than 2.6% earlier in the session. Still, the benchmark remains in correction territory as it is still more than 10% off its Jan. 3 record close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average turned positive after carving a steep rout in morning trade, and now sits just shy of 10% from its record close. The Nasdaq Composite opened in bear market territory, but not rests about 16% from it's all-time high in correction territory.
Here's how the market settled on Thursday:
S&P 500 Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Nasdaq Composite Index
Biden vows to widen sanctions on Russia in response to Ukraine invasion:
President Joe Biden said Thursday that the U.S. will introduce a new wave of sanctions against Russia in a broad effort to exclude Moscow from the global economy. Biden said the penalties will target trillions in assets and include measures against Russian elites and banks.
"Today, I'm authorizing additional strong sanctions, and new limitations on what can be exported to Russia," Biden said during a press conference. "This is going to impose a severe cost on the Russian economy both immediately and over time.
Biden added that the United States alongside other G-7 leaders are "in full and total agreement: We will limit Russia;a ability to do business in dollars, euros, pounds, and yen to be part of the global economy."
The White House has also authorized additional troops to be stationed in Germany as NATO allies look to increase defenses in Europe, Biden said.
Jobless claims continue to fall from Omicron peak:
Initial jobless claims dipped lower last week, signalling recovery from the Omicron-related spike in unemployment seen earlier this year.
First-time unemployment claims totaled 232,000 for the week ended Feb. 19, according to the Labor Department's latest print published Thursday, down from the previous week's revised total of 249,000.
Continuing jobless claims--which trail a week behind--also fell for the week ended Feb. 12, totaling 1.476 million from the prior week's revised print of 1.588 million.
Here's how market benchmarks started trading soon after open:
S&P 500 Index: -2.55% or -107.90 points to 4,117.60
Dow Jones Industrial Average: -2.44% or -808.48 points to 32,323.28
