NEW YORK -- Stocks pushed further into record territory Tuesday, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index's winning streak to start the year extended to a sixth day.
Health care stocks and banks led the way, as calm continues to reign over markets around the world. The strong gains overshadowed weakness for dividend-paying stocks and other areas of the market hurt by rising interest rates after 10-year Treasury yields hit their highest level since March.
The S&P 500 rose 3.58 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,751.29 to equal its longest winning streak leading off a year since 2010.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 102.80 points, or 0.4 percent, to 25,385.80; the Nasdaq composite gained 6.19 points, or 0.1 percent, to 7,163.58; and the Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks slipped 1.71, or 0.1 percent, to 1,560.10.
Stocks have been rising at a remarkably steady pace for more than a year as investors bask in a global economy that's strengthening. Corporate profits are also on the upswing, and Washington's recently approved tax-cut legislation is expected to goose earnings even higher.
The powerful combination has kept markets marching higher even though stock prices have grown to become more expensive than usual, relative to corporate profits.
"I would like to say that there's something onerous coming, just because it would be different from what everyone is talking about," said Nate Thooft, senior portfolio manager at Manulife Asset Management. But he said he expects the market to continue gliding higher as the economy and corporate profits strengthen.
Health care stocks rose 1.1 percent for the biggest gain among the 11 sectors that make up the S&P 500.
Companies are set to begin reporting their results for the last three months of 2017, and the pace will pick up later this week. They'll need to deliver strong profit growth to justify the big moves they've made already.
Target on Tuesday cited tax changes as one reason for raising its profit forecast for the year. It also became the latest retailer to say it enjoyed a strong holiday season, and its shares rose $1.96, or 2.9 percent, to $69.14.
On the losing end of the market were stocks that pay big dividends, which tend to move in the opposite direction of bond yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.55 percent from 2.48 percent late Monday. That makes dividend-paying stocks less attractive relative to bonds for investors seeking income.
In markets abroad, Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.6 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.4 percent, and the Shanghai Composite inched up 0.1 percent. South Korea's Kospi lost 0.1 percent.
The dollar fell to 112.61 Japanese yen from 113.07 yen late Monday. The euro fell to $1.1933 from $1.1965, and the British pound dipped to $1.3534 from $1.3564.
Benchmark U.S. crude oil rose $1.23 to settle at $62.96 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose $1.04 to settle at $68.82 per barrel.
Gold fell $6.70 to settle at $1,313.70 per ounce, silver dropped 13 cents to $17.01 per ounce, and copper slipped a penny to $3.22 per pound.
Business on 01/10/2018