Stocks closed mostly higher Monday, nudging the S&P 500 within striking distance of its all-time high set in February. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% after wavering between small gains and losses in the early going. The benchmark index is now within 1% of its February record high. The gains came on the first trading day since President Trump announced several stopgap moves to aid the economy in response to the collapse of talks on Capitol Hill for a bigger rescue package, the AP reports. The S&P 500 gained 9.19 points to 3,360.47. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 357.96 points, or 1.3%, to 27,791.44. The Nasdaq composite lost 42.63 points, or 0.4%, to 10,968.36.
Most stocks across Wall Street notched gains, with hotels, cruise operators, and airlines—some of the hardest-hit companies due to the pandemic—among the big gainers. Smaller stocks also had a strong showing, pushing the Russell 2000 index up 15.49 points, or 1%, to 1,584.67. Losses in technology, health care and communication services stocks, which have been among the biggest gainers this year, kept the market's gains in check. "The more economically sensitive stocks are driving the market higher,” said Brent Schutte, chief investment strategist of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management. "The rest of the market today and over the past few days is doing better."
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