Dow touches 14,000 again

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Dow Jones industrial average jumped above 14,000 at the start of Thursday's session as investors cheered some better than expected earnings from tech bellwether IBM, while awaiting a second day of testimony from Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke.

The Dow (up 81.05 to 13,999.27, Charts) climbed nearly 0.6 percent at the start of the session, after declining in the previous session, straddling the 14,000 mark first reached Tuesday.

The broader S&P 500 (up 8.41 to 1,554.58, Charts) rose about 0.6 percent higher, while the tech-fueled Nasdaq (up 21.34 to 2,720.83, Charts) climbed nearly 0.8 percent.

Stocks got a lift from IBM (up $3.92 to $115.00, Charts, Fortune 500) late Wednesday. The tech giant raised its profit forecast for the year, sending its shares over 4 percent higher in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has returned to Capitol Hill for a second day of testimony before a Congressional committee.

Stocks retreated Wednesday after the Fed chief warned about inflation risks and deepening problems in the housing sector.

In addition to Bernanke's testimony, investors will have the minutes from the Fed's June 28 meeting to digest, which is slated for 2 p.m. ET.

On the earnings front, online auctioneer eBay reported strong quarterly sales and earnings after the market close Wednesday. EBay (down $0.66 to $33.39, Charts, Fortune 500) shares slipped over 2 percent.

The reporting deluge continued Thursday with Bank of America (up $0.40 to $49.76, Charts, Fortune 500) reporting results ahead of Wall Street's estimates.

Cell phone maker Motorola (up $0.25 to $18.25, Charts, Fortune 500) posted a quarterly loss and said its revenue fell due to weak phone sales.

In major corporate news, PepsiCo (up $0.11 to $66.24, Charts, Fortune 500) and Swiss food giant Nestle explored merger talks earlier this year, although a number of complications got in the way of any deal, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

In other economic news, jobless claims fell unexpectedly for the second straight week as the number of new filing declined by 8,000 to 301,000.

Beside the Fed minutes, investors will have plenty of economic readings to sift through Thursday including the Philadelphia Federal Reserve survey for July and leading indicators index for June.

Oil prices climbed as U.S. light crude for August delivery added 56 cents to $75.61 a barrel.

Treasury prices eased after climbing Wednesday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose to 5.06 percent from 5.03 percent late Wednesday.

The dollar remained near a record low against the euro and was up a tad against the Japanese yen.

In global trade, European stocks rallied, and Asian markets mostly rose.