The dark blue captain’s hat, with its golden oak-leaf clusters, sits atop a bookcase in Bryan Lawlor’s home, out of reach of the children. The uniform their father wears still displays the four stripes of a commercial airline captain, but the hat stays home. The rules forbid that extra display of authority, now that Mr. Lawlor has been downgraded to first officer.

A steel industry trade group said the United States exported more steel than it imported in August for the first time in more than 50 years. But another group said that assessment was based on a selective reading of government data.

The Dow topped 9,000 for the first time since January as investors shrugged off a rise in jobless claims and cheered earnings from Ford and 3M. A third straight rise in existing-home sales also buoyed the market.

The Dow topped 9,000 for the first time since January as investors shrugged off a rise in jobless claims and cheered earnings from Ford and 3M. A third straight rise in existing-home sales also buoyed the market.

Stocks rallied Thursday as investors shrugged off a rise in jobless claims and focused on encouraging earnings from Ford and 3M. A third straight rise in existing-home sales also buoyed the market.

Futures indicated a slightly higher open for Wall Street Thursday ahead of another vast amount of earnings reports.