S&P 500 Hits Record Day After Best Trading In Weeks

NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. stocks burst to their best day in three weeks Friday, helping Wall Street to return to record heights and avoid what could have been a second straight weekly loss. The S&P 500 added 1.7%, and both it and the Dow set all-time highs. Some of the biggest gains came from companies whose profits are likely to jump the most if COVID-19 vaccinations and massive spending by the U.S. government juice the economy as much as economists expect. Banks got a boost from some loosening of regulatory restrictions by the Federal Reserve and a continued rise in bond yields. Crude oil jumped and helped lift energy stocks.