US stock indexes extend climb into record heights

By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer

Miners and other raw materials companies led a broad rally in U.S. stocks late Friday afternoon, steering the major indexes toward record highs for the second day in a row. Rising crude oil prices also gave energy companies a big boost. Investors kept their focus on strong company earnings and corporate deal news.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 101 points, or 0.5 percent, to 20,273 as of 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 8 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,316. The Nasdaq composite index added 19 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,734. The three indexes were pushing further into record territory after closing at new highs on Thursday.

THE QUOTE: "We're about 70 percent, almost three quarters of the way through earnings season and about 75 percent of the companies have beat the targets," said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading & derivatives at Charles Schwab. "That's the best number we've seen, in terms of beats, for the last three years."

EARNINGS & TRUMP: Investors have focused on companies quarterly results lately as they size up corporate America's growth prospects. Earnings are on track to mark the second-consecutive quarter of growth after a losing streak of five straight quarters. Beyond earnings, investors are also eying Washington D.C. for signs the Trump administration will deliver on the promised business-friendly policy proposals that helped drive a market rally last fall, including slashing government regulations and taxes.

MINE THIS: Several materials sector stocks were trading higher, including mining company Freeport-McMoRan, which rose 40 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $15.79.

ADDITION BY SUBTRACTION: Sears leaped 27.4 percent after the troubled department store chain said it will slash at least $1 billion a year in costs by selling stores, cutting jobs or selling some of its well-known brands. The stock gained $1.52 to $7.06.

GOOD FIT: Skechers surged 19.8 percent after the shoe retailer reported surprisingly strong fourth-quarter revenue thanks partly to sales in China. The stock gained $4.61 to $27.89.

STRONG QUARTER: Activision Blizzard vaulted 18.2 percent after the video game maker's fourth-quarter earnings beat expectations. The maker of "Call of Duty," ''Candy Crush" and other games was the biggest gainer in the S&P 500, climbing $7.25 to $46.98.

BETTER RESULTS: Shares in CBRE Group gained 8.4 percent after the real estate investment company delivered earnings that exceeded Wall Street forecasts and issued a strong profit outlook for this year. CBRE added $2.64 to $34.21.

SOLD: Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. rose 5.6 percent after the baby formula maker agreed to be bought by British household products company Reckitt Benckiser for $90 a share, or $16.6 billion. Mead Johnson shares climbed $4.62 to $87.67.

THUMBS DOWN: Yelp skidded 13.2 percent after the online reviews company's revenue forecasts disappointed Wall Street. The stock shed $5.47 to $36.02.

DASHED EXPECTATIONS: Cerner fell 4.5 percent after the health care information technology company lowered its earnings and revenue guidance for the year. The stock was the biggest decliner in the S&P 500, sliding $2.43 to $51.44.

MARKETS OVERSEAS: In Europe, Germany's DAX rose 0.2 percent, while France's CAC 40 was flat. Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.4 percent. Greece's stock market was up 2.5 percent as its creditors met to find a way to ease concerns about the future of its bailout program. In Asia, investors welcomed strong January trade data from China. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.2 percent, while South Korea's Kospi added 0.5 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1 percent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index surged 2.5 percent as the yen weakened against the dollar, lifting shares of exporters.

OIL & GAS: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 86 cents, or 1.6 percent, to close at $53.86 a barrel in New York. The contract rose 66 cents on Thursday. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oil prices, gained $1.07, or 1.9 percent, to close at $56.70 a barrel in London. Natural gas futures declined 11 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $3.03 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In other energy futures trading, wholesale gasoline added 2 cents to $1.59 a gallon, while heating oil rose 2 cents to $1.67 a gallon.

TREASURY YIELDS: Bond prices fell. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 2.41 percent from 2.40 percent late Thursday.

CURRENCIES: The dollar strengthened to 113.41 yen, up from 113.33 yen on Thursday. The euro weakened to $1.0631 from $1.0658.

METALS: In metals trading, the price of gold fell 70 cents to $1,234.40 an ounce. Silver rose 19 cents to $17.93 an ounce. Copper added 11 cents, or 4.3 percent, to $2.77 a pound.