How the major stock indexes fared on Thursday

Investors celebrated news of another jump in home sales by propelling the Dow Jones industrials to their first close above 9,000 since January. Better-than-expected profits at some of the nation's biggest companies also lifted the market, leaving the Dow at its highest level since November. The latest climb followed a report that sales of previously occupied homes rose for the third month in a row in June. Unemployment and a weak housing market have been two of investors' biggest worries so any sign of improvement is big news for the economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 188.03, or 2.1 percent, to 9,069.29.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 22.22, or 2.3 percent, to 976.29.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 47.22, or 2.5 percent, to 1,973.60.

For the week:

The Dow is up 325.35, or 3.7 percent.

The S&P is up 35.91, or 3.8 percent.

The Nasdaq is up 86.99, or 4.6 percent.

For the year:

The Dow is up 292.90, or 3.3 percent.

The S&P is up 73.04, or 8.1 percent.

The Nasdaq is up 396.57, or 25.1 percent.