US stocks end higher, Dow Jones gains 320 points

US stock indices boosted their gains on Thursday, as bond yields retreated following the Federal Reserve decision to hold interest rates steady, amid market anticipation of Friday's monthly jobs report and expectations of a slowdown in the pace of employment growth in April.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 322 points, or 0.85%, closing at 38,225 points.

The S&P 500 index rose 45 points, or 0.9%, finishing at 5,064. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 235 points, or 1.5%, to end at 15,840. Nvidia stock leapt 3.35%. Amazon added 3.2%, Apple ended 2.2% up.

Elsewhere, the STOXX Europe 600 Index added 0.2%to 503.2 points.

FTSE 100 closed at a record level for the sixth time to date, gaining 0.65% to end at a 8,172 points. Germany’s DAX 40 Index edged down 0.2% to 17,896 points. The CAC 40 Index closed 0.9% up at 7,914 points.

The Nikkei 225 closed 0.1% higher at 38,236 points. TOPIX also remained unchanged at 2,728 points.