S&P 500 Breaks All-Time Closing High

'Economic data is coming in much better than expected'
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 12, 2020 4:05 PM CDT
S&P 500 Briefly Surpasses Record High
Stocks rebounded in early trading on Wall Street Wednesday, Aug. 12, carrying the S&P 500 back toward the cusp of its record high.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

Stocks marched broadly higher on Wall Street Wednesday, briefly nudging the S&P 500 above its all-time closing high set in February, before the coronavirus pandemic led to a historic market plunge. The benchmark index notched a 1.4% gain, its eighth in nine days. It ended within 0.2% of its record high from Feb. 19, when the coronavirus seemed like only a far-away worry for Wall Street, the AP reports. The S&P 500 rose 46.66 points to 3,380.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 289.93 points, or 1.1%, to 27,976.84. The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, climbed 229.42 points, or 2.1%, to 11,012.24.

Big technology stocks led the way higher once again. Health care and communication services stocks also had a strong showing. "Economic data is coming in much better than expected; the earnings season is much better than expected," says Megan Horneman, director of portfolio strategy at Verdence Capital Advisors. "You couple all of those things with the massive amounts of fiscal and monetary stimulus taking place. That's why we’ve seen the (market) rally so quickly off its low and at the magnitude that we've seen."

(More stock market stories.)

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