Shares of industrial and transportation companies rallied after promising economic data.

The Philadelphia Fed said its gauge of regional business activity inched up to negative 10.6 in January from negative 12.8 in the prior month.

The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits in mid-January fell to 187,000 and touched the lowest level in 16 months, showing that layoffs remain near record lows. The sharp drop in claims is related to New York State school holidays, economists said. Indeed, recent jobs data, including the Beige Book survey from the Federal Reserve, indicate that it's becoming harder to find a job in the U.S.

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor and affiliate Kia jointly captured the No. 2 slot last year in U.S. electric-vehicle sales, trailing only Tesla, which still holds a commanding lead. Separately, a nascent market for clean-energy tax breaks is surging faster than expected, with deals totaling as much as $9 billion already done and tens of billions more expected this year.


Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-18-24 1754ET