The S&P 500 closed out its best week in three months with a slim gain today as investors continued to propel equities near four-year highs.
Two slightly softer economic reports curbed broader gains, keeping both the Dow and the Nasdaq in modestly negative territory.
The Dow broke a string of seven straight gains. Had it closed higher, it would have marked the Dow's longest such run in more than a year.
The benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index rose for a fifth straight week, gaining 2.4 per cent in its best weekly performance since mid-December.
Investors, buoyant over the economic outlook, have pushed the S&P above 1,400 to its
highest level since May 2008 after a surge of almost 30 per cent from its most recent closing low on October 3rd.
Energy shares were the big gainers of the day. The S&P energy index rose 1.2 per cent in sync with a jump in crude prices, which advanced on continuing tensions over Iran's disputed nuclear program and the potential for supply disruptions in the region.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 20.14 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 13,232.62 at the close. The Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 1.11 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 3,055.26.
For the week, the Dow gained 2.4 per cent and the Nasdaq was up 2.2 per cent.
The lion's share of the week's gains came on Tuesday, when positive comments from the US Federal Reserve and JPMorgan Chase & Co sparked a late-day rally.
Elsewhere on the economic front, the Labor Department said its Consumer Price Index increased 0.4 per cent last month after advancing 0.2 per cent in January, matching expectations, while inflation pressure, measured by the core CPI excluding food and energy, remained subdued.
Apple closed flat at $585.57 as its new iPad proved to be another hot seller today, as expected.
Hundreds of iPad fans lined up at stores across Asia to be the first to get their hands on the tablet computer.
Reuters