Bond yields were mostly higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was at 4.36%, up from 4.34% late Wednesday.
Delta surged 12%, bringing other airlines along with it, after beating Wall Street’s revenue and profit targets. The Atlanta airline also gave a more optimistic view for the remaining summer travel season than it had just a couple months ago.
Delta’s encouraging report boosted the entire airline sector. United jumped 10.1%, American climbed 7.9% and JetBlue rose 4.8%.
European stock indexes were mostly higher Thursday following a mixed finish in Asian markets.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.4 %, weighed down by selling of exporters’ shares amid the yen’s appreciation, which cuts profits from exports, and dampened sentiment because of the lack of progress in the Japan-U.S. trade talks.
