Wavering stocks inch a bit further into record territory

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks inched a bit further into record territory Wednesday after teeter-tottering through the day.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose by just a sliver, but it was enough for a seventh straight gain.

The S&P 500 climbed 3.16 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,537.74 after flipping between slight losses and gains through the day. The sevenday win streak is the index’s longest since a similar run in May.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 19.97 points, or 0.1 percent, to 22,661.64, and the Nasdaq composite picked up 2.91, or less than 0.1 percent, to 6,534.63. All three indexes added to records set a day earlier.

A report from payroll processor ADP said that hiring by private employers weakened sharply last month, a setback for an economy that had been enjoying a generally strengthening job market. But economists and investors were expecting a low number because of the damage done by hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

The government will release its more comprehensive jobs report on Friday, and economists also are forecasting a weaker number than a month earlier.

Other reports painted a more encouraging picture. One showed that the nation’s services companies expanded last month at their fastest rate in more than a decade. The report from the Institute for Supply Management followed one on Monday that showed U.S. manufacturing also is growing strongly.

Utility stocks also were strong, and such stocks in the S&P 500 jumped 1.1 percent.