GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks mixed, yields rise ahead of US jobs report; defense shares gain

Major stock indexes were mixed ‌and Treasury yields rose on Thursday ahead of Friday's key U.S. jobs report, while defense company shares gained amid U.S. President Donald Trump's plans for a $1.5 trillion military budget. ⁠The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.19%. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.18% to 98.90.

Major stock indexes were mixed ‌and Treasury yields rose on Thursday ahead of Friday's key U.S. jobs report, while defense company shares gained amid U.S. President Donald Trump's plans for a $1.5 trillion military budget. An aerospace and defense index rose to ⁠an all-time high, with European defense shares also hitting a new high. Oil prices also climbed as investors monitored developments in Venezuela. Over the weekend, U.S. military forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The White House said on Tuesday that Trump was also discussing options for acquiring Greenland.

"The defense budget is ​growing, if anything. Sure you're getting a little bit more pressure from the administration to do things a certain way, but investors don't ‍seem to care about at this point," said Joe Saluzzi, partner and co-founder at Themis Trading. Data showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits rose moderately last week, suggesting that layoffs were relatively low at the end of 2025, though demand for labor remained sluggish. Traders are pricing in at least two rate cuts from the Federal ⁠Reserve this ‌year, although a divided central bank indicated ⁠in December there would be only one cut in 2026. The Fed is expected to keep rates steady at its meeting this month. Friday's U.S. employment report for ‍December will be key.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 270.03 points, or 0.55%, to 49,266.11, the S&P 500 rose 0.53 points, or 0.01%, to 6,921.46 and the ​Nasdaq Composite fell 104.26 points, or 0.44%, to 23,480.02. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe fell 2.22 points, or 0.22%, to 1,029.26. ⁠The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.19%.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.18% to 98.90. The euro flirted with ⁠its eighth straight drop against the dollar. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 4.5 basis points to 4.183%, from 4.138% late on Wednesday.

Venezuela's default-stricken bonds were finally cooling off following their near 40% surge after the weekend's events fuelled investor hopes for a massively complex debt restructuring. U.S. ⁠crude rose 1.8% to $57.00 a barrel and Brent rose to $61.13 per barrel, up 1.95% on the day. Gold prices were nearly flat.

Oil prices ⁠climbed after two straight days of ‌declines, settling at a two-week high. Brent futures rose $2.03, or 3.4%, to settle at $61.99 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.77, or 3.2%, to settle at $57.76.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)