S+P Closes at Record High

Business Roundup for Thursday, February 27.

NEW YORK (AP) — The Standard & Poor's 500 index is closing at a record high and has turned positive for the year. The all-time high Thursday came after solid results from a number of U.S. companies including Mylan, a drug maker, and several retailers. The S&P 500 has fallen just short of a record the previous three days. On Thursday, the index increased nine points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,854, beating its Jan. 15 record by six points. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 74 points, or 0.5 percent, to 16,272. The Nasdaq climbed 26 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,318. J.C. Penney jumped 25 percent after the department store operator swung to a profit in the fourth quarter after posting a big loss in the same period a year earlier.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen says some recent economic figures have pointed to weaker consumer spending than had been expected. She says the Fed will be watching to see whether the slowdown proves only a temporary blip caused by severe winter weather. Yellen tells the Senate Banking Committee that the Fed will be alert to upcoming data to make sure that the economy keeps strengthening.

OAK BROOK, Ill. (AP) — McDonald's plans to expand a test this year that lets people order customized burgers. The world's biggest hamburger chain began testing the waters of personalized orders last year with a "build-your-own burger" concept at a location in California. In addition to its traditional menu, the restaurant offers tablets where people can tap out the bun, patty, cheese and toppings they want on their burgers.

GILLSBURG, Miss. (AP) — Oil companies plan a big increase in drilling activity in 2014 in a shale formation in southwest Mississippi and Louisiana. They're trying to extract oil from the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale, which one study says could hold 7 billion barrels. Louisiana and Mississippi are trying to spur activity through tax breaks. Leaders hope drilling will boost the rural region's economy.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Federal officials are outlining proposed measures to shield endangered whales if seismic testing for oil and gas deposits is allowed along the Atlantic coast from Delaware to Florida. The measures are contained in the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's final environmental impact statement released today. The measures would include an exclusionary zone along the main migratory route for the endangered North Atlantic right whale, as well as other proposals intended to limit the impact on sea life.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Labor Department says the number of people applying for unemployment benefits rose by 14,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 348,000. But economists say winter storms two weeks ago may have caused some people to delay submitting their applications until this week, temporarily boosting the figures. The less volatile four-week average was unchanged.

WASHINGTON (AP) — American businesses ordered fewer long-lasting manufactured goods in January. The Commerce Department says orders for durable goods declined a seasonally adjusted 1 percent in January compared with December. Much of the decline was driven by a 20 percent drop in demand for commercial aircraft. But core capital goods, a key category that excludes volatile transportation and defense orders, rose a solid 1.7 percent.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Average rates on fixed mortgages are higher for a third straight week as new data showed a surprisingly strong pace of new-home sales last month. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate for the 30-year loan increased to 4.37 percent from 4.33 percent last week. The average for the 15-year mortgage rose to 3.39 percent from 3.35 percent.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Mortgage giant Freddie Mac has posted its ninth straight profitable quarter, with net income of $8.6 billion from October through December. That's nearly double the earnings of $4.5 billion in the last three months of 2012. Earnings were boosted by a continuing rise in home prices, which reduced the amounts the company had to set aside to cover losses on mortgages.

NEW YORK (AP) — Investors still appear reluctant to push stocks higher before they see more evidence of economic growth. For a third straight day the S&P 500 traded above its record close but fell back. The index edged up a fraction of a point yesterday to 1,845, three points short of its record high close on Jan. 15. The Dow rose 19 points to 16,198. The Nasdaq was up four points to 4,292. Futures point to gains this morning.

TOKYO (AP) — International stock markets were muted today as investors awaited cues from the Federal Reserve chief's testimony to lawmakers. Janet Yellen, the new head of the Federal Reserve, appears before the U.S. Senate's Banking Committee later today. The dollar gained against the euro and fell against the yen. Benchmark U.S. crude oil slipped but was above $102.50 a barrel.

WASHINGTON — The government reports weekly jobless claims today and January's durable goods numbers. Also today, Freddie Mac will release the weekly mortgage rates and three large retailers will report quarterly financial results. Sears Holdings and Best Buy report earnings before the market opens; Gap reports after the closing bell.

DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government's auto safety watchdog is investigating whether General Motors acted quickly enough to recall 1.6 million older-model small cars in a case linked to 13 deaths. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that it opened the probe "to determine whether GM properly followed the legal processes and requirements for reporting recalls." The agency has the authority to fine GM as much as $35 million.

MADRID (AP) — Spain's National Statistics Institute says the economy grew a smaller-than-expected 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2013 compared with the previous three-month period. The figure released today revised earlier predictions of 0.3 percent growth. The institute confirmed that economic activity shrank 1.2 percent for the whole of 2013. Spain, which has a 26 percent unemployment rate, emerged from recession in the third quarter of last year after nine quarters of decline.