U.S. stocks climbed on Thursday as investors awaited Friday's highly anticipated jobs report to gauge the pace of the labor-market recovery. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 318.19 points, or 0.9%, to close near its session high, reaching a record close of 34,548.53. First-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 498,000 for the week ended May 1, hitting a fresh pandemic-era low and better than a Dow Jones estimate of 527,000. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect one million payrolls to have been added last month and the unemployment rate is expected to fall to 5.8% from 6%. The Russell 1000 Value index has gained 17% this year, while the Russell 1000 Growth index has advanced 5%.
