U.S. stocks close higher on eased trade concerns

NEW YORK, April 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday as signs showed that the United States has opened doors for trade talks with China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 240.92 points, or 0.99 percent, to 24,505.22. The S&P 500 increased 18.15 points, or 0.69 percent, to 2,662.84. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 34.44 points, or 0.49 percent, to 7,076.55.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Thursday he expected the United States and China would work out their trade differences over time and that trade barriers likely "will come down on both sides," according to CNBC.

U.S. equities had a wide trading session on Wednesday, with the Dow surged 750 points after plunging over 500 points, as trade conflicts between the two largest economies weighed on the market sentiment.

China on Wednesday unveiled a list of products worth 50 billion U.S. dollars imported from the United States that will be subject to higher tariffs, including soy bean, automobiles and chemical products.

The move was taken after the U.S. administration announced a proposed list of products subject to additional tariffs, which covers Chinese exports worth 50 billion dollars with a suggested tariff rate of 25 percent.

The date of implementation will depend on when the U.S. government imposes the tariffs on Chinese products, China's Ministry of Finance said.

On the economic front, U.S. Labor Department said on Thursday that the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims last week was 242,000, an increase of 24,000 from the previous week's revised level, higher than market expectations. Enditem