Wall Street rises on better-than-expected jobless data

Special Report: Global Financial Crisis

NEW YORK, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street posted moderate gains in early trading Thursday, as new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly dropped last week to their lowest level since January.

The U.S. Labor Department said Thursday that new jobless claims fell to a seasonally adjusted 601,000 from the previous week's 631,000. Economists had been expecting a jump to 635,000.

Meanwhile, many retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., reported better-than-expected April sales. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, said its April same-store sales rise five percent, beating expectations.

Investors also are awaiting the formal release of the government's stress tests of banks.

The Dow Jones rose 40.62 to 8,552.90. Broader indexes also traded higher. The Standard Poor's 500 index rose 6.44 to 925.97;and the Nasdaq rose 13.41 to 1,772.51.