Dow Jones hits record highs on tech gains

new york — An early wave of buying sent US stocks solidly higher on Wall Street on Thursday, pushing the Dow Jones Industrial Average above the alltime high it closed at in January.

The S&P 500, the benchmark for many index funds, was also above the peak it reached last month. Technology stocks and banks accounted for much of the rally. Utilities and other safe-play stocks lagged behind as investors shoveled money into riskier assets. The S&P 500 index rose 14 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 2,922 as of 10:15am Eastern Time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 209 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 26,615. The Nasdaq composite climbed 57 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 8,007. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies picked up 5 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 1,708.

Major indexes in Europe were headed higher. Germany’s DAX gained 0.9 per cent, while France’s CAC 40 rose 1 per cent. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.3 per cent. Earlier in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 finished flat. The Kospi in South Korea added 0.7 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.3 per cent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.3 per cent. Shares fell in Taiwan but rose in Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. US bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 3.08 per cent. —