Helping drive the Dow higher were Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Walmart (NYSE: WMT). Higher inflation target, U.S. jobs report, and COVID-19 rapid testing One thing contributing to the Dow's rally on Thursday was a new strategy from the U.S. Federal Reserve. Investors may have become more optimistic about an economic recovery after Abbott Laboratories received U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorization for an inexpensive COVID-19 antigen test.