S&P 500 crosses 1,700 points for the first time

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose this morning after an encouraging employment report, sending the Standard & Poor's 500 index above 1,700 points for the first time.

The S&P 500, which investors follow closely as a gauge for the rest of the market, was up 15 points in early trading, enough to push it a fraction of a point over the 1,700 marker.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 127 points, or 0.8 percent, to 15,626. The Dow is also at a record high.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 33 points, or 0.9 percent, to 3,659.

The driving force for the advance was a report from the Labor Department that the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest since 2008.

Investors know that employment figures that track just a week are volatile, but it was still a surprisingly strong number. Economists are likely rethinking their estimates on July job growth, numbers that the government will release Friday.