S&P 500 Sets New Record High Close

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index closed at an all-time high, halting a three-session slide, as Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc. led a rally in technology shares and the weaker dollar spurred gains in multi-national companies.

The S&P 500 Index rose 1.1 percent to 2,120.78 at 4 p.m. in New York, as the gauge erased this week’s decline. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 1.3 percent.

“The bond markets are stabilizing and jobless claims were positive, so it’s giving a more positive spin to the day today,” said Anwiti Bahuguna, senior portfolio manager at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. “Modest growth with low inflation doesn’t call for the Fed to react, and the equities markets like that.”

The S&P 500 posted its first gain this week after ending little changed on Wednesday amid weaker-than-forecast retail sales and as corporate-deal activity was overshadowed by concern a fixed-income selloff was not done.
Economic Data

The dollar is on track for its longest weekly losing streak since October 2013, amid signs the U.S. economy is struggling to gather strength, bolstering the case for keeping interest rates lower for longer. A weaker dollar lessens the drag on the economy and corporate profits as exports become more competitive and imports less attractive to consumers.

Jobless claims decreased to 264,000, below the 273,000 projected by economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The four-week average was the lowest since April 2000. A separate report showed wholesale prices in the U.S. unexpectedly declined in April from the prior month, indicating inflation is well-contained as Federal Reserve officials weigh when to raise the benchmark interest rate.