Dow, S&P 500 set new closing highs

Stocks ended higher Wednesday as the Dow and S&P 500 each hit new closing highs and the tech sector rallied.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 0.1% to 17,827.75, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index ended up 0.3% to 2072.83. The Nasdaq composite index gained 0.6% to 4787.32.

Both the Dow and S&P 500 notched their previous closing highs on Monday. The Dow's nearly 13-point gain Wednesday put the blue-chip index about 10 points above its previous record. A nearly 6 point gain for the S&P 500 put that broader market measure about 3 and a half points above its old record.

Market gains were initially kept in check as investors digested a mixed batch of economic reports on consumer spending, durable goods orders jobless claims and home sales.

The U.S. stock market will be closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday and will close early, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern time, on Friday.

Stocks have barely budged this week ahead of the break.

In a barrage of economic news released Wednesday:

• Orders for long-lasting manufactured goods rose in October, but a key category that tracks business investment plans declined sharply for a second straight month.

• A separate report showed that the number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits jumped last week, pushing total applications above 300,000 for the first time in nearly three months.

• Another report showed U.S. consumers spent modestly more in October, a slight improvement after no gain at all in the previous month.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 index dropped 0.1% to 17,383.58 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index gained 1.1% to 24,111.98.

European stock markets were mixed as Britain's FTSE index dropped less than 0.1% to 67298.17 and Germany's DAX index gained 0.6% to 9915.56. France's CAC index fell 0.2% to 4373.42.

Stocks ended mixed Tuesday as investors weighed falling consumer confidence against a better-than-expected report on economic growth. Crude oil prices slipped 2.5% to $74.30 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Contributing: Kim Hjelmgaard, The Associated Press