Morning Report 7 Aug 20: US sharemarkets rose on Thursday

US lawmakers pledged to keep working toward a virus relief package and US President Trump said he could act unilaterally on some measures. Sentiment was also boosted by Labor Department numbers which showed the first fall in jobless claims in three weeks. Shares of Facebook jumped 6.5% and Apple shares climbed 3.5% to record highs. ViacomCBS shares rose 3.4% after beating analysts' estimates for quarterly revenue. But Western Digital shares sank 16.1% after the hard drive maker reported weaker-than-expected revenues. The Dow Jones index rose by 185 points or 0.7%. The S&P500 index lifted 0.6%. The Nasdaq index lifted 109 points or 1% to close above the 11,000 mark for the first time. 

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