04:30 PM EST, 03/07/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed higher Thursday, with the S&P 500 reaching a new record, as markets awaited the official February jobs report, scheduled to be released Friday.

The S&P 500 rose 1% to 5,157.4, surpassing its previous closing record of 5,137.1 set Friday. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.5% to 16,273.4, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.3% to 38,791.4. Technology and communication services led the sector gainers. Only financials and real estate saw declines.

Government data are expected to show Friday that the US economy added 200,000 jobs last month, which would mark a decrease from January's 353,000 gain, according to a Bloomberg-compiled consensus.

"The strength of the labor market and hot data on inflation since the beginning of the year are reducing our subjective odds that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in May," Oxford Economics said in a Thursday note. The brokerage pegs net nonfarm payrolls growth at 225,000 for February.

Challenger, Gray & Christmas said US-based employers announced 84,638 layoffs last month, the highest February tally since 2009.

"As we navigate the start of 2024, we're witnessing a persistent wave of layoffs," said Andrew Challenger, the employment firm's senior vice president. "Businesses are aggressively slashing costs and embracing technological innovations, actions that are significantly reshaping staffing needs."

Separately, the US Department of Labor said the seasonally adjusted number of initial claims in the week ended March 2 was 217,000, unchanged from the previous week's level that was revised up by 2,000. The consensus was for a 216,000 level in a survey of analysts compiled by Bloomberg.

The US two-year yield fell 5.2 basis points to 4.51% Thursday, while the 10-year rate lost 1.4 basis points to 4.09%.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell delivered his semi-annual testimony before the Senate on Thursday, reiterating remarks from his testimony before the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

"If the economy evolves broadly as expected, it will likely be appropriate to begin dialing back policy restraint at some point this year," Powell said Thursday and Wednesday. However, the economic outlook "is uncertain, and ongoing progress toward our 2% inflation objective is not assured."

Separately, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said Thursday it would "eventually become appropriate" for the Federal Open Market Committee to gradually cut interest rates if there's continued progress in the fight against inflation. "In my view, we are not yet at that point," Bowman said.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 0.3% to $78.93 per barrel.

In company news, Kroger ( KR ) offered an upbeat full-year profit outlook as inflation-hit consumers seek cheaper meal options, providing a boost to the supermarket chain's fiscal fourth-quarter results. The company's shares jumped 9.9%, the best performer on the S&P 500.

Intel ( INTC ) was the top gainer on the Dow, up 3.7%. Bloomberg News reported late Wednesday that the tech giant was expected to receive $3.5 billion from the US government to develop advanced semiconductors for military and intelligence programs.

Gold rose 0.4% to $2,166 per troy ounce, while silver gained 0.2% to $24.55 per ounce.