S&P 500 Sets New Record High, Nasdaq At Best Levels Since 2000

(RTTNews) - Following the rally seen over the course of the previous session, stocks saw some further upside during trading on Friday. The gains on the day lifted the tech-heavy Nasdaq to its highest levels since early 2000, while the S&P 500 set a new record high.

The strength on Wall Street was partly due to a continued increase by the price of crude oil, which saw further upside after jumping sharply on Thursday.

Crude oil for March delivery surged up $1.57 to $52.78 a barrel after soaring $2.37 to $51.21 a barrel in the previous session.

Reflecting the continued increase by the price of crude, oil service stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index surged up by 2.9 percent after closing lower for three straight days.

Helmerich & Payne (HP), Tidewater (TDW), and Weatherford (WFT) turned in some of the oil service sector's best performances.

Other energy stocks also moved notably higher, driving the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index and the NYSE Arca Oil & Gas Index up by 1.8 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively.

Significant strength was also visible among steel stocks, as reflected by the 3 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Steel Index. With the gain, the index reached its best closing level in well over a month.

Electronic storage, internet, software, and trucking stocks are also saw considerable strength, while utilities and tobacco stocks moved to the downside.

The major averages all closed in positive territory, although the Nasdaq outperformed its counterparts. While the Nasdaq advanced 36.22 points or 0.8 percent at 4,893.84, the Dow rose 46.97 points or 0.3 percent to 18,019.35 and the S&P 500 climbed 8.51 points or 0.4 percent to 2,096.99.

For the week, the Nasdaq soared by 3.1 percent, while the S&P 500 surged up by 2 percent and the Dow jumped by 1.1 percent.