How major US stock indexes fared Thursday

U.S. stocks climbed on Thursday, but only after pinballing through another shaky day of trading, as Wall Street waits to see if Washington can get past its partisanship to deliver another economic rescue package.

The S&P 500 ended the day 0.5% higher. But it careened from an early 1% gain to a slight loss before arriving there. The Nasdaq composite rose a healthier 1.4%, as tech stocks again propped up the market.

Such big swings have become typical recently, as investors handicap the chances of a deal on Capitol Hill to send more cash to Americans and other aid for the economy.

On Wednesday:

The S&P 500 rose 17.80 points, or 0.5%, to 3,380.80.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 35.20, or 0.1%, to 27,816.90.

The Nasdaq composite added 159.00, or 1.4%, to 11,326.51.

The Russell 2000 index of small company stocks picked up 23.51 points, or 1.6%, to 1,531.20.

For the week:

The S&P 500 is up 82.34 points, or 2.5%.

The Dow is up 642.94 points, or 2.4%.

The Nasdaq is up 412.94 points, or 3.8%.

The Russell 2000 is up 56.29 points, or 3.8%.

For the year:

The S&P 500 is up 150.02 points, or 4.6%.

The Dow is down 721.54 points, or 2.5%.

The Nasdaq is up 2,353.90 points, or 26.2%.

The Russell 2000 is down 137.27 points, or 8.2%.