NEW YORK, Shawwal 18, 1435, Aug 14, 2014, SPA -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday after conciliatory comments from Russia helped ease concerns about escalation of the conflict in Ukraine and offset some uninspiring earnings reports, Reuters reported. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 61.78 points, 0.37 percent, to end unofficially at 16,713.58. The S&P 500 gained 8.46 points, 0.43 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,955.18. The Nasdaq Composite added 18.88 points, 0.43 percent, to close unofficially at 4,453.00. -- SPA 23:19 LOCAL TIME 20:19 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w