Dow ends above 22,000 for 1st time as Apple shares surge

NEW YORK (AFP) – The Dow finished above 22,000 for the first time Wednesday, closing at its sixth straight record following strong earnings from tech giant Apple.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 22,016.24, a gain of 0.2 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to close at 2,477.57, narrowly missing a record of its own, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index retreated slightly to 6,362.65.

Apple surged 4.7 percent after reporting that quarterly net profit climbed 12 percent to $8.7 billion, and revenue rose seven percent to $45.4 billion. The tech giant in its report Tuesday highlighted its increased sales of digital content and services.

Payrolls firm ADP reported that the US economy added 178,000 jobs in July, a bit fewer than in June but still a solid level. The report comes two days before the more closely scrutinized government employment report.

US stocks have risen to a succession of records over the last couple of weeks as secondquarter earnings have broadly bested expectations.

Some observers say stocks could find it hard to score additional gains given the alreadylofty valuations, but others still see more potential upside.