Dow Jones closes above 10,000

Hondas high-tech humanoid robot rings the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange

The Dow Jones industrial average index of leading US shares closed above 10,000 points.

The index had been hovering just under the psychologically important level for a while, but had not broken through it since 10 January.

During Thursday, the index gained 13.36 points to close at 10,003.03.

"We can easily go above 10,000, even 10,100. But can we stay above that? That's another question and I have my doubts," said technical analyst at Hilliard Lyons, Richard Dickson.

The gain of a seemingly marginal 0.13% is important because the index is widely seen as a thermometer; reading it gives an indication of whether corporate America is healthy, or whether it is sick to the bone.

When the US officially entered recession in March, the stock market had suffered for months.

The Dow index had been a clear indication of what was happening in the US economy, ending its first quarter of 2001 at 9,870, 9% below where it had started the year.

In January 2001, the Dow started trading around 10,600.