Stocks close out upbeat week

The stock market closed out its best week of the year Friday as big gains by retailers and technology companies pushed major indexes higher.

Stocks faded as Friday wore on, but they still finished higher. The S&P 500 index climbed almost 3.3 percent this week. By just a hair, that was the biggest weekly gain for the index in 2015.

The index climbed Monday and Wednesday as the U.S. market didn’t seem to be affected by a string of unsettling international events, including last Friday’s terrorist attack in Paris. Instead, investors saw signs the U.S. economy remains strong.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 91.06 points, or 0.5 percent, to 17,823.81. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 7.93 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,089.17. The Nasdaq composite index gained 31.28 points, or 0.6 percent, to 5,104.92. The Dow turned positive for the year by a fraction of a point.

Analysts said investors have slowly gotten used to the idea that the Federal Reserve is going to raise interest rates. That prospect worried them greatly a few months ago, but now, stocks are rising because investors are taking heart that the Fed believes the economy is on solid footing. Meanwhile, new economic stimulus in Europe could strengthen the global economy.

This story was originally published November 20, 2015 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Stocks close out upbeat week."