New York – Wall Street is ticking toward more records on Thursday following mixed U.S. data that likely keeps the path clear for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates in order to boost the economy.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% and was on track to set an all-time high for a third straight day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 371 points, or 0.8%, as of 9:55 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.4% higher.

Treasury yields swiveled a couple times in the bond market but ultimately eased following the economic reports, which Wall Street took as cementing the case for a cut to rates at the Fed’s meeting next week.

One of the reports said more U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, an indication that the number of layoffs could be rising. It’s the latest dis

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