US STOCKS-Wall St jumps on hopes worst for labor market is over

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* U.S. weekly jobless claims fall for third straight week
* House set to pass $484 bln more in coronavirus relief
* U.S. business activity hits fresh record lows
* Indexes up: Dow 1.32%, S&P 500 1.25%, Nasdaq 1.30%

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By Shreyashi Sanyal and C Nivedita
April 23 (Reuters) - Wall Street jumped 1% on Thursday as a
third straight decline in weekly jobless claims raised hopes the
worst of the coronavirus pandemic's impact on the labor market
was over, while energy stocks zoomed 5% on a rebound in oil
prices.
Weekly jobless claims fell to 4.43 million from a revised
5.24 million, but it was still staggering and took the total in
the past five weeks to a record 26 million, wiping out all the
U.S. jobs created since the global financial crisis. "The decline in initial jobless claims is encouraging, but
the damage has already been done with the insured unemployment
rate surging to a record high in the (previous) week," said Paul
Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics.
The energy index .SPNY gained the most among the 11 S&P
500 sectors as oil prices recovered in a tumultuous week that
saw U.S. crude futures crash below zero for the first time in
history. O/R
U.S. stock indexes have rallied this month on a raft of
global stimulus, but the benchmark S&P 500 remains more than 15%
below its record high as worsening economic indicators
foreshadow a deep global recession.
A survey showed U.S. business activity plumbed new record
lows in April, mirroring dire figures from Europe and Asia as
strict stay-at-home orders crushed production, supply chains and
consumer spending.
Still, the mood was risk-on with the only decliners among
S&P 500 sub-indexes being defensive utilities .SPLRCU and
consumer staples .SPLRCS . The banking sub-sector .SPXBK
tracked a slight rise in Treasury yields. US/
The CBOE volatility index .VIX has retreated from 12-year
peaks hit last month, but remains well above levels seen in the
past two years and analysts have warned of another selloff as
Corporate America issues worrying forecasts for the year.
"What we are looking for is the turning point where the more
cyclical companies start to outperform," said Bill Callahan,
investment strategist at Schroders in New York.
"So when we see light at the end of the tunnel, you will
start to see industrial, financials, maybe even energy companies
start to do better and outperform."
Meanwhile, Congress was preparing nearly $500 billion more
in aid for small businesses and hospitals, which is expected to
clear the House of Representatives later in the day.
At 11:13 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 311.01 points, or 1.32%, at 23,786.83, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 34.94 points, or 1.25%, at 2,834.25 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 110.05 points, or 1.30%, at 8,605.43.
Blackstone Group Inc BX.N jumped 6% as the asset manager
posted a 4% rise in its first-quarter distributable earnings,
driven by a surge in management fees. A 10.3% jump for Las Vegas Sands Corp LVS.N lifted U.S.
casino operators after the company predicted a speedy recovery
in Asia on pent-up gambling demand. Shares in Wynn Resorts WYNN.O , MGM Resorts MGM.N and
Melco Resorts MLCO.O gained between 4% and 8%.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners more than 3-to-1 on
the NYSE and on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded six new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 25 new highs and five new lows.