01:21 PM EDT, 09/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes rose after China's signal more stimulus is in the pipeline boosted basic materials and relatively strong macroeconomic data pushed government bond yields higher.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 5,732.8, after scaling an intraday record high of 5,767.37. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.6% to 42,153.4 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3% to 18,131.2. Most sectors traded higher while energy and real estate led the decliners.

In Beijing, the nation's Politburo vowed the "necessary fiscal spending" required to reach its annual 5% gross domestic product growth target and support property markets close on the heels of monetary-easing moves by the People's Bank of China. The Hang Seng Mainland Property Index soared almost 17% in Hong Kong. Copper traded 2.8% higher. China, the second-biggest economy in the world, is one of the biggest trading partners for the US.

Alcoa ( AA ) , an aluminum producer, Southern Copper ( SCCO ) , and Albemarle (ALB), a specialty chemicals firm, were among the top gainers in basic materials, with intraday gains of at least 8%. The basic materials peer group jumped 2%.

In economic news, US initial jobless claims fell to 218,000 in the week ended Sept. 21 from an upwardly revised 222,000 in the prior week, compared with expectations for an increase to 223,000 in a survey of analysts compiled by Bloomberg. The four-week moving average decreased by 3,500 to 224,750.

US economic growth, measured by gross domestic product, was unrevised in Q2 from the 3% gain in the previous estimate, above a 2.9% increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

New orders for US durable goods held steady in August following a 9.9% gain, compared with expectations for a 2.7% decrease in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. Excluding a 0.8% drop in transportation orders, new orders would have been up 0.5% in August after a 0.1% decrease in July. Expectations were for a 0.1% gain.

Most US Treasury yields rose, turning the corner from earlier in the session, with the 10-year yield up 2.5 basis points to 3.81%. The two-year rate traded 6.5 basis points higher at 3.62%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil slumped 2.8% to $67.77 a barrel.

The Financial Times on Thursday reported that Saudi Arabia is ready to abandon its $100 per barrel official price target and is prepared for a period of lower oil prices as OPEC+ closes in on returning 2.2 million barrels per day of voluntary production cuts to market in December, citing people familiar with the country's thinking.

In company news, Micron Technology ( MU ) late Wednesday swung to a bigger-than-expected profit for the fiscal Q4 as mounting demand for artificial intelligence propelled the memory and storage product maker's revenue above Wall Street's estimates. Shares of the chipmaker soared 13% intraday, the top performer on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq.

Gold rose 0.3% to $2,693.50 an ounce after touching a new intraday high of about 2,708.70. Silver rose 1% to $32.35.