Dow Jones, S&P 500, Nasdaq surge as investors focus on easing US unemployment data — Details

US stock market today: The benchmark stock market indices in the United States, like the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite, surged at the US stock market open on Thursday, 12 February 2026, as investors focused on easing unemployment concerns in the US economy and shifted their attention from corporate earnings.

According to a report from the news agency Reuters, the US market investors were reassured by signs of resilience in the American economy after Wednesday's data release showed strong jobs growth and a slide in unemployment numbers.

At 9:30 a.m. (EDT) opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.10% to 50,170.27 points, while the S&P 500 rose 0.23% to open at 6,957.54 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.33% to 23,142.87 points at the opening bell.

Dow Jones today

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading 0.12% higher at 50,176.95 points as of 10:53 a.m. (EDT), compared to 50,121.40 points at the previous market close, according to MarketWatch data.

Walmart Inc., Boeing Co., Coca-Cola Co., Sherwin-Williams Co., McDonald's Corp., Verizon Communications Inc., Merck & Co. Inc., Procter & Gamble Co., Johnson & Johnson, Home Depot Inc., UnitedHealth Group Inc., Honeywell International Inc., Amgen Inc., 3M Co., and Caterpillar Inc. were among the top gainers on Thursday.

While other firms like Chevron Corp., American Express Co., Salesforce Inc., Microsoft Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc., International Business Machines Corp., Walt Disney Co., and Cisco Systems Inc. were among the laggards.

S&P 500 index

The S&P 500 index is trading 0.55% lower at 6,903.27 points as of 11:03 a.m. (EDT), compared to 6,941.47 points at the previous Wall Street close, MarketWatch data shows.

Zebra Technologies Corp., Akamai Technologies Inc., Motorola Solutions Inc., Seagate Technology Holdings PLC, Equinix Inc., Howmet Aerospace Inc., Western Digital Corp., Iron Mountain Inc., Exelon Corp., and International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. were among the gainers.

While companies like C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc., AppLovin Corp., Expeditors International of Washington Inc., Tyler Technologies Inc., Rollins Inc., CBRE Group Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., Baxter International Inc., CDW Corp., and J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. were among the laggards.

Nasdaq Composite

The Nasdaq Composite index is trading 1.57% lower at 22,709.60 points as of 11:24 a.m. (EDT), compared to 23,066.47 points at the previous market close, according to MarketWatch data.

Fastly Inc., SCWorx Corp, Jiuzi Holdings Inc., Cognex Corp., Novocure Ltd., SS Innovations International Inc., BingEx Ltd., Galecto Inc., IPG Photonics Corp., and Algorhythm Holdings Inc. were among the top gainers on the index on Thursday.

Others like Strata Skin Sciences Inc., Quince Therapeutics Inc., BioRestorative Therapies Onconetix Inc., Icon PLO, Seres Therapeutics Inc., Neo-Concept International Group Holdings Ltd., TG-17 Inc., Decent Holding Inc., and American Rebel Holdings were among the top laggards in the market session.

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Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. We advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and circumstances may vary.