Steady gains for stocks deliver more records

Technology and health care companies helped drive stocks to more gains Tuesday, leading to another round of milestones on Wall Street.

The S&P 500 index rose 0.3 percent, eclipsing the all-time high it set on Friday. The Nasdaq composite and Russell 2000 index of small company stocks also set record highs. The likelihood that one or more coronavirus vaccines could begin to be distributed in the U.S. in coming weeks has kept investors in a buying mood, boosting their optimism for an economic recovery next year.

The gains, which followed a shaky start for the market, came as the U.K. became the first Western country to start a mass vaccination program. On Tuesday, U.S. health regulators issued a positive initial review of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by U.S. drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech. A decision to allow its use is expected within days, though wide distribution is likely months away.

“The vaccine news and the focus on that is the most important thing for the market at the moment,” said Stephanie Roth, portfolio macro analyst, J.P. Morgan Private Bank. “At this point, the excitement is for the post-vaccine world.”

The S&P 500 rose 10.29 points to 3,702.25. The index had one of its best months in decades during November and is already up 2.2 percent so far this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 104.09 points, or 0.4 percent, to 30,173.88. The tech-heavy Nasdaq picked up 62.83 points, or 0.5 percent, to 12,582.77, marking its fourth straight record high.

Small-company stocks rose much more than the rest of the market, a signal that investors are feeling more optimistic about the economy. The Russell 2000 index climbed 26.53 points, or 1.4 percent, to 1,917.78.

Nearly 60 percent of the companies in the benchmark S&P 500 closed higher, with energy stocks notching the biggest gain. Stocks had been down in the early going on worries about rising coronavirus cases, but turned higher around midday. Traders are looking ahead to Thursday, when U.S. regulators will meet to determine whether to green-light the distribution of the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.

The need for a vaccine has been heightened in recent weeks as the coronavirus has been surging across much of the world. The virus has claimed more than 1.5 million lives, including over 284,000 in the U.S., the highest toll of any country.