By Anora Mahmudova and Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

Weekly jobless claims fall to lowest level since 2000

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rallied into the close and ended Thursday's session with solid broad-based gains.

Analysts pointed to a rebound in oil prices as the driving force behind the resurgence, as stocks have been closely tracking crude-oil futures, lately.

WTI oil futures fell sharply earlier, but have since rebounded to settle at about $44 a barrel.

The S&P 500 (SPX) closed up 19.10 points, or 1%, at 2,021.26, with all 10 main sectors finishing higher.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) jumped 225.48 points, or 1.3%, to 17,416.85, as big gains in McDonald's Corp and Boeing Co helped lift the index.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) ended the day up 45.41 points, or 1%, at 4,683.41.

Ahead of the opening bell, market reaction to a stronger-than-expected jobless claims figure was mostly muted, with stocks dipping into the red in early trade.

"The biggest contributor to intraday volatility on Wall Street has been oil. We saw big swings in the stock market whenever oil prices moved sharply in either direction," said Randy Frederick, managing director at the Schwab Center for Financial Research.

Trading on Wall Street so far this year has been nearly twice as volatile as 2014, as evidenced by the average daily price change in the S&P 500 in both directions -- of almost 20 points.

"Volatility doesn't always mean losses, and can spell opportunity for traders, as more sizable moves in either direction remain possible this week," added Frederick.

Ed Cowart, managing director and portfolio manager at Eagle Asset Management, hypothesized that oil, which has dipped by 60% since its 2014 peak in June, is near its bottom.

"We are now seeing a very steep contango -- when investors buy physical oil and store it, selling it at a higher price for future delivery. Usually it's a sign that oil prices bottomed," Cowart said.

"The steep oil drop created a lot of value in the energy space. Large companies with solid book-to-value ratios will do well," he added.

Meanwhile, stocks have had a rocky run over the past two days.

Kim Caughey Forrest, investment analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group, commenting on today's earnings, said companies that are missing expectations are being punished.

"Lots of companies are reporting good and okay quarterly results but are saying that 2015 is going to be tougher than they previously thought. The market, which always looks forward, is adjusting," Forrest said.

In economic news, the number of people who applied for U.S. unemployment-insurance benefits plunged 43,000 to 265,000 in the week that ended Jan. 24, hitting the lowest tally in 14 years, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. The decline -- the biggest since November 2012 -- was much larger than expected.

Separately, pending home sales cooled in December, which the National Association of Realtors attributed to fewer homes available for sale and a slight rise in prices. The pending home sales index fell 3.7% during December, though the year-on-year gain was 11.7%, the highest since June 2013.

Corporate moves: McDonald's (MCD) gained 5.1% after the fast-food giant announced that President and CEO Don Thompson will retire March 1, and Chief Brand Officer Steve Easterbrook will take his place.

Alibaba (BABA) shares dove 8.8% after worse-than-expected sales gains.

Ford(F) shares rose 2.7% after the automaker posted results.

Shares of Facebook (FB) rose 2.3% after the social-networking company on Wednesday reported results that were slightly above consensus.

Qualcomm Inc.(QCOM) shares skidded 10% on an outlook-cut from the chip maker.

Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN) shares rallies 8.4% in after-hours trade after quarterly results. Google Inc.(GOOG) shares dropped 2.5% in after-hours trade as the company's earnings missed expectations.

For more on today's notable movers, read our regular Movers & Shakers column.

Overseas markets: Oil futures ended with small gains Thursday, but only after the U.S. benchmark sank below the $44-a-barrel level for the first time in nearly six years in a trading environment shadowed by a rapidly growing glut of crude. Oil prices (CLH5) settled at $44.53 a barrel.

Meanwhile, gold (GCG5) prices fell by the biggest percentage in 13 months, dropping 2.4% to settle at $1,254.60 an ounce. The dollar (DXY) drifted lower. In Asia, the Nikkei 225 retreated on earnings and Fed rate-hike worries.

European stocks closed marginally lower, as oil stocks slumped.

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