US stocks hit record highs

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit record closing highs on Thursday, with the market propped up by gains in the consumer discretionary sector after strong reports from Best Buy and other retailers.

The discretionary index gained 0.9 per cent, while the S&P 500 retail index was up 1.6 per cent, its best day since Dec. 7.

Best Buy jumped 21.5 per cent, hitting a record high and making it the top gainer on the S&P, after its comparable sales unexpectedly rose last quarter.

Tommy Hilfiger owner PVH was the second-biggest S&P gainer, with a 4.8-per cent jump to a near 6-month high on strong results.

Sears was up 13.5 per cent after posting its first quarterly profit in nearly two years.

The reports follow mixed results this reporting period from other retailers, some of which continue to be hurt by competition from Amazon.com.

But they helped to give major indexes a sixth straight day of gains, more than making up for last week's selloff.

In addition, the CBOE Volatility Index .VIX, the most widely followed barometer of expected near-term stock market volatility, fell to a two-week low of 9.72 during the session.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 70.53 points, or 0.34 per cent, to 21,082.95, the S&P 500 gained 10.68 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 2,415.07 and the Nasdaq Composite added 42.23 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 6,205.26, according to Reuters.