Wall St opens higher as upbeat earnings lift mood

The major Wall Street indexes started the day higher on Thursday after Meta Platforms, Eli Lilly, and Comcast reported results that were better than expected, outweighing statistics that indicated the U.S. economy slowed down more than predicted in the first quarter.

At the start of trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 79.79 points, or 0.24%, to 33,381.66. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 117.80 points, or 0.99%, to 11,972.15 at the opening bell, while the S&P 500 opened up by 19.30 points, or 0.48%, at 4,075.29.