Dow hits record on construction spending, auto sales

The Dow Tuesday jumped to a fresh record close following a rise in US construction spending and encouraging auto and "Cyber Monday" sales data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 102.75 points (0.58 percent) to 17,879.55, about 50 points above the record set last week.
The broad-based S&P 500 rose 13.11 (0.64 percent) to 2,066.55, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 28.46 (0.60 percent) at 4,755.81.
The Commerce Department reported that total US construction spending rose 1.1 percent in September, almost double the increase projected by analysts.
General Motors and Chrysler were among the automakers that exceeded analyst forecasts for November US sales.
US online sales on Monday came in at $2.65 billion, up 16 percent from 2013, according to the Adobe 2014 Digital Index.
The estimate for Cyber Monday, often seen as the annual highpoint for online retail, helped offset disappointing data on the "Black Friday" kickoff of the holiday shopping season.
Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities, said the latest data confirmed that "the US economy seems to be leading" global growth.
Hogan said many petroleum stocks benefited from a wave of "bargain hunting" after a pullback amid sliding oil prices. Oil-related stocks Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Weatherford International all gained, despite another drop in oil prices Tuesday.
Telecom companies took a beating after Sprint launched a promotion to cut the monthly rate plan in half for Verizon and AT&T customers who switch to its network. Sprint fell 3.1 percent, AT&T lost 2.2 percent and Verizon shed 1.8 percent.
Biotech company Biogen shot up 6.4 percent after it reported promising early clinical results for an Alzheimer's drug. Rivals Gilead Sciences and Amgen gained 1.6 and 1.7 percent, respectively.
Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 2.29 percent from 2.22 percent Monday, while the 30-year increased to 3.00 percent from 2.95 percent. Bond yields and prices move inversely.