NEW YORK, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday as Wall Street weighed fresh earnings from AI chip giant Nvidia and awaited key inflation data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.16 percent to 45,636.9. The S&P 500 added 0.32 percent to a record 6,501.86, while the Nasdaq Composite increased 0.53 percent to close at 21,705.16.
Seven of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors closed in positive territory. Communication services led the advance with a 0.94 percent gain, followed by energy, which climbed 0.68 percent. Utilities and consumer staples were the biggest laggards, falling 0.87 percent and 0.46 percent, respectively.
Nvidia's Q2 results, released on Wednesday, topped overall expectations but underperformed in its data-center segment.
"We had previously expected 2025 to represent a peak year in the AI cycle due to several factors," D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria wrote in a note to clients. "Based on the progress made by the AI models over the last six months, their expanded capabilities and rapid adoption, we now believe demand growth for inference will sustain for the foreseeable future."
On the economic front, weekly jobless claims in the United States were broadly in line with expectations, while Q2 GDP growth was revised upward to 3.3 percent, rebounding from a 0.5 percent decline in Q1.
Markets were also monitoring a deepening dispute between U.S. President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook, who sued the president Thursday after rejecting a termination letter, a move seen as the strongest challenge yet to the Fed's independence from the White House.
The market's next key test arrives Friday with the release of fresh inflation data.
