New York Report: S&P climbs to fresh record
US stocks rose yesterday, with the S&P 500 climbing to an all-time closing high after strong earnings from Bank of America and data signalled that the economy was improving.
Bank of America climbed 2.3 per cent to $17.15 and gave one of the biggest boosts to the S&P 500 after the second-largest US bank said its quarterly profit surged by nearly $3bn on an increase in revenue.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 108.08 points, or 0.66 per cent, to end at 16,481.94. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced 9.50 points, or 0.52 per cent, to close at 1,848.38. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 31.87 points, or 0.76 per cent, to finish at 4,214.88.
The S&P 500 ended at a record high, beating its previous record close by just 0.02 of a point. At its session peak, the index climbed to 1,850.84, a record intraday high.
About 62 per cent of the stocks traded on the NYSE closed higher.