An early wave of buying sent U.S. stocks solidly higher on Wall Street Thursday, pushing the Dow Jones Industrial Average above the all-time high it closed at in January.

The S&P 500, the benchmark for many index funds, was also above the peak it reached last month. Technology stocks and banks accounted for much of the rally. Utilities and other safe-play stocks lagged behind as investors shoveled money into riskier assets.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index rose 14 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,922 as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern Time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 209 points, or 0.8 percent, to 26,615. The Nasdaq composite climbed 57 points, or 0.7 percent, to 8,007. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies picked up 5 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,708.

TECH ON A TEAR: Some of the biggest gains went to technology companies. Western Digital rose 3.3 percent to $60.33.

BANKING ON BANKS: Financial companies also posted solid gains. Morgan Stanley climbed 2.5 percent to $50.32.

OVERHAUL GAINS: Under Armour rose 5 percent to $19.68 after the athletic apparel company said it will cut 400 jobs, or 3 percent of its staff, and will spend more money on a restructuring plan.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 0.1 percent to $71.21 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, was down 0.5 percent to $78.98.

BOND YIELDS: Bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 3.08 percent.

CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 112.17 yen from 112.27 yen on Wednesday. The euro strengthened to $1.1758 from $1.1674.

MARKETS OVERSEAS: Major indexes in Europe were headed higher. Germany's DAX gained 0.9 percent, while France's CAC 40 rose 1 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.3 percent. Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 finished flat. The Kospi in South Korea added 0.7 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.3 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.3 percent. Shares fell in Taiwan but rose in Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore.