Broad Stock-market Advance Takes Three S&P 500 Sectors To Closing Records

Three of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended at records on Thursday, in a positive sign for the breadth of the market's advance as major indexes hit all-time highs of their own. Industrials , utilities , and consumer staples all ended at their highest levels ever, while other sectors weren't far behind. The industrial sector rose 0.8% on Thursday, bringing its year-to-date advance to 6.9%, while utilities rose 0.7%, extending its 2017 move to a rise of 9.3%. Consumer staples rose 0.7% on Thursday, and are up 8.8% for the year. Only two of the 11 sectors - materials and energy - ended lower on the day. Beyond the three to hit records, both technology and consumer-discretionary stocks were within all-time highs of their own. Tech has been the strongest performer this year, up nearly 20%.