US stocks rallied on Thursday after an upbeat report on the labour market, a continued rise in oil prices and news Pfizer would buy Hospira in a massive deal. Weekly jobless claims rose less than expected last week. The report comes on the heels of a private payrolls report that fell short of expectations on Wednesday and ahead of a monthly employment report on Friday.
Oil prices bounced from the prior session's selloff, with US crude up 5.3 percent to $51.04 and Brent up 4.9 percent to $56.81. The S&P energy index jumped 1.5 percent. "It seems like the (energy) stocks are trading with the fundamentals, they are not richer than the fundamentals, so maybe we have some 'up' opportunity here," said Terry Morris, senior equity manager for National Penn Investors Trust Company in Reading, Pennsylvania. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 141.49 points, or 0.8 percent, to 17,814.51, the S&P 500 gained 15.54 points, or 0.76 percent, to 2,057.05 and the Nasdaq Composite added 29.15 points, or 0.62 percent, to 4,745.85. The S&P 500 has been subject to volatility recently due to swings in crude prices and developments regarding Greek debt negotiations. Greece said on Thursday it would not be "blackmailed" by its European Union partners but it wanted to find a joint solution to its debt and austerity crisis.