Strong gains by energy companies and retailers helped nudge each of the major USA stocks indexes to a record high close Thursday, erasing mild losses from the day before.
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Meanwhile, crude oil prices rallied, with the September crude contract up $1.78 at US$43.49 per barrel after the International Energy Agency said it expects supply and demand for oil to be more in balance the rest of this year.
Macy’s (M.N) shares soared as much as 18 percent, marking the best day for the department store operator in almost eight years, after it reported a smaller-than-expected drop in quarterly comparable-store sales and said it would close 100 stores.
South of the border, stock markets climbed to all-time record highs with the Dow Jones industrial average ahead 117.86 points at 18,613.52, the broader S&P 500 composite index up 10.30 points to 2,185.79 and the Nasdaq composite rising 23.82 points to 5,228.40.
At the final bell the Dow Jones had rallied 0.6% to 18,613.
Better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and a set of strong economic data have helped the S&P 500 to break its record intraday highs 11 times since early July.
EATING IT UP: Brinker International jumped 7.6 percent after the owner of the Chili’s Bar & Grill and Maggiano’s Little Italy chains reported strong quarterly results.
Benchmark U.S. crude was up $1.80, or 4.3 percent, at $43.51 a barrel in NY.
Shares of Macy’s ended the session up more than 17 percent. Brent crude, used to price worldwide oils, was up $1.71, or 4 percent, at $45.80 in London. Materials stocks also rose 0.4% thanks to solid gains at chemical and mining companies. It edged up 0.1 percent from its previous high. Macy’s also said it plans to close about 100 stores next year as it tries to become more nimble in a competitive market.
Other retailers to advance included Best Buy, up 2.6 per cent, and Williams-Sonoma, up 3.7 per cent. Releases from Urban Outfitters, Home Depot and Wal-Mart are among those due next week.
The retailers’ earnings fueled optimism for the government’s latest monthly tally of retail sales Friday.
Shake Shack Inc. tumbled 5.7 percent after quarterly same-store sales at the fast-food chain missed analyst projections. The stock shed $2.34 to $38.53.
Thursday marked the first time since December 1999 that all three major indices hit a record on the same day, Bloomberg News reported. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.7%.
In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed 0.4 percent higher, while China’s Shanghai Composite slipped 0.5 percent. Copper gained two cents, or 0.9%, to 2.19 a pound. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.52% from 1.50 late Wednesday.
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The dollar held firm in the wake of hawkish comments by a Fed official suggesting that an interest rate increase this year is appropriate amid positive signs on the inflation front and improving labor market conditions.
