5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday

stock futures were mixed Thursday after strong earnings and economic optimism pushed the Dow Jones Industrial Average up nearly 100 points to a record closing high.

The Labor Department on Thursday reported that initial jobless claims sank to a pandemic-era low of 498,000 last week, better than expectations and down 92,000 from the prior week.

Moderna said its Covid vaccine was 96% effective in kids ages 12 to 17, according to early data released Thursday along with the company’s mixed first-quarter earnings and revenue.

The Biden administration said Wednesday it supports waiving intellectual property protections for Covid vaccines, as other countries around the world struggle to manufacture the life-saving doses.

According to prepared testimony, Gensler will tell lawmakers his agency is considering measures to require big investors to disclose more about their short positions, which played into January’s GameStop frenzy, as well as their use of derivatives, which felled Archegos.

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