The U.S. dollar weakened in late trading on Thursday.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, dropped by 0.33 percent to 98.819 at 3 p.m. (1900 GMT).
In late New York trading, the euro increased to 1.1710 dollars from 1.1683 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound was up to 1.3446 dollars from 1.3415 dollars in the previous session. The U.S. dollar bought 158.98 Japanese yen, higher than 158.51 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar declined to 0.7904 Swiss francs from 0.7914 Swiss francs, and it fell to 1.3822 Canadian dollars from 1.3849 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar lost to 9.2799 Swedish kronor from 9.3069 Swedish kronor.
U.S. dollar ticks down
U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday, extending gains as oil prices moderated from intraday highs following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement that Israel has agreed to open direct negotiations with Lebanon.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 275.88 points, or 0.58 percent, to 48,185.80. The S&P 500 added 41.85 points, or 0.62 percent, to 6,824.66. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 187.42 points, or 0.83 percent, to 22,822.42.
Nine of the 11 primary S and P 500 sectors closed in positive territory, with consumer discretionary and industrials leading the advancers at 2.46 percent and 1.04 percent, respectively. Energy and health care were the only laggards, declining 1.16 percent and 0.19 percent.
Crude prices advanced early in the session but retreated from their highs after Netanyahu's comments. West Texas Intermediate futures for May delivery rose as much as 8.78 percent, briefly surpassing 102 U.S. dollars per barrel, before settling up around 4 percent above 98 dollars. International benchmark Brent crude settled 1.23 percent higher at near 96 dollars per barrel.
The market also drew support from a more than 2.61 percent rise in Meta Platforms after the company unveiled its new artificial intelligence model, Muse Spark.
Defensive sectors gained ground as well, with Walmart advancing nearly 1.5 percent alongside utilities names such as Constellation Energy.
Meanwhile, core inflation in the United States remained above the Federal Reserve's 2-percent target in the period leading into the recent Iran conflict. The Commerce Department reported that the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which excludes food and energy, rose a seasonally adjusted 3 percent in February. The headline PCE measure increased 2.8 percent.
In corporate developments, shares of all the "Magnificent Seven" technology giants ended higher except for Microsoft. Amazon led the group with a 5.6-percent gain.
U.S. stocks close higher to extend winning streak
