Stocks edge higher ahead of Memorial Day holiday
Source: AP-EXCITE
By ALEX VEIGA
Major stock indexes drifted higher in morning trading Friday, putting the market on track for a third consecutive day of modest gains. A government report showing sales of new U.S. homes increased last month pushed up homebuilder stocks. Investors also bid up shares in GameStop and Hewlett-Packard after the companies reported positive earnings.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained five points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,897 as of 11:21 a.m. Eastern Time. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 45 points, or 0.3 percent, to 16,588. The Nasdaq composite added 10 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,164. U.S. financial markets will be closed Monday for Memorial Day.
HOUSING: The Commerce Department reported that sales of U.S. new homes rose 6.4 percent in April after slumping in the previous two months. Traders were encouraged by the latest sign that the housing market may be recovering. Taylor Morrison Home led the sector, rising 67 cents, or 3.3 percent, at $21.21.
UPWARD TREND: Major indexes rose Thursday and have finished higher in four of the last five trading days. The S&P 500 index, the most widely used benchmark for stock funds, has climbed 1.1 percent this week. The index moved early Friday ahead of its previous record closing high of 1,897 set early last week.
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Trader Thomas McCauley, left, and specialist Donald Civitanova work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, May 23, 2014. Stocks inched higher early Friday in quiet trading ahead of the Memorial Day weekend. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
