FILE – In this Jan. 13, 2021 file photo, people walk by the New York Stock Exchange. Stocks are opening higher on Wall Street as traders welcome some strong reports on the economy including a drop in jobless claims and a big increase in retail spending, as well as more robust earnings from big companies including Citigroup and United Healthcare
Currency traders watch monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 16, 2021. Asian shares were mixed Friday as jubilance over positive U.S. economic data and a Wall Street record high were tempered by caution in the region, where the coronavirus vaccine rollout has lagged.
A currency trader gestures at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 16, 2021. Asian shares were mixed Friday as jubilance over positive U.S. economic data and a Wall Street record high were tempered by caution in the region, where the coronavirus vaccine rollout has lagged.
Currency traders watch monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 16, 2021. Asian shares were mixed Friday as jubilance over positive U.S. economic data and a Wall Street record high were tempered by caution in the region, where the coronavirus vaccine rollout has lagged.
A currency trader talks with his colleague at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, April 16, 2021. Asian shares were mixed Friday as jubilance over positive U.S. economic data and a Wall Street record high were tempered by caution in the region, where the coronavirus vaccine rollout has lagged.
FILE – Pedestrians pass the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021, in New York. Stocks are opening higher on Wall Street, keeping the S&P 500 on track for its fourth weekly gain in a row. The benchmark index was up 0.3% in the early going Friday, April 16, led by gains in banks, industrial and health care companies.
Stocks added to their recent gains Friday, driving the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average to new highs.
The S&P 500 rose 0.4%, led by gains in companies that rely directly on consumer spending, health care stocks and banks, which benefited from higher Treasury yields. The benchmark index notched its fourth straight weekly gain.
The gains were tempered by modest declines in technology stocks, which have been prone to pull back when bond yields move higher. Rising bond yields tend to make shares in technology companies that have had a strong runup over the past year look too expensive. Crude oil prices slipped, weighing down energy companies.
Bond yields rose broadly after falling earlier in the week. The yield of the 10-year Treasury note rose to 1.59% from 1.53% late Thursday. Still, bond yields are down from the highs they hit earlier in the month, when the 10-year note traded at a yield of 1.75%.
“There’s sort of a churning with regard to interest rates and in the market itself,” said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager with Globalt Investments.
The S&P 500 rose 15.05 points to 4,185.47. The Dow gained 164.68 points, or 0.5% to 34,200.67. The S&P and Dow also hit all-time highs on Thursday. The technology-heavy Nasdaq inched up 13.58 points, or 0.1%, to 14,052.34 after recovering from an early slide.
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