The US markets closed higher on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq ending at a record and major indexes overall wrapping up a strong October, as quarterly results kept equities drifting higher. For the month, the Dow rose 4.3% while the S&P 500 was up 2.2% and the Nasdaq ended up 3.6%. All three posted their biggest monthly percentage rise since February. Both the Dow and the S&P wrapped up their seventh straight monthly gain, making for the longest such streak for the blue-chip gauge since one ended April 2012, and the best for the S&P 500 since May 2013. The Nasdaq rose for its fourth straight month. Investors followed the start of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting, which isn’t expected to yield any changes to monetary policy. Investors will watch for clues on the health of the economy and inflation as gauged by policy makers.
On the economy front, the Chicago purchasing managers index rose to 66.2 in October, the best reading since March 2011. The consumer confidence index rose to 125.9 in October from 120.6 in September, marking the best reading since December 2000. US employment costs rose 0.7% in the third quarter, while the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.5% during the three-month period ending in August and was up 5.9%, compared with the same period a year ago - stronger than the 5.8% annual gain in the period ending in July.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 28.5 points or 0.12 percent to 23,377.24, the Nasdaq gained 28.706 points or 0.43 percent to 6,727.67, and the S&P 500 edged higher by 2.43 points or 0.09 percent to 2,575.26.