Dow soars more than 700 points to close at another record high

Those gains came amid a broader rally on news of stronger-than-expected June retail sales data, healthy earnings reports and expectations that the Federal Reserve will impose its benchmark interest rate cut in September.

One winner was UnitedHealth, whose stock rose 6.5 percent after the health insurance giant reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings, aiding the Dow’s rise. The insurer has the highest weight in the Dow, meaning major movements in its stock typically affect the index.

The Dow includes 30 large, so-called blue-chip companies traded on U.S. stock exchanges, including Apple, Boeing, Nike and Walmart. It’s a closely watched indicator of how the stock market is doing.

The S&P 500 also soared, notching its 38th record close of the year with a gain of 35.98 points, or 0.6 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index saw a more moderate gain of 36.77 points, or 0.2 percent.

Some of the biggest winners this past week have been small-cap stocks in the Russell 2000 index, which rose 3.5 percent Tuesday. The index has outperformed the Nasdaq and is on its biggest five-day run since April 2020. The boost is a sign that market strength could persist beyond technology stocks as investors eye the expected Fed rate cut this fall, which will make borrowing cheaper — something especially important for smaller firms.

The market has rallied since last week’s milder-than-expected inflation report. The Dow hit its previous record Monday, after Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell said that recent data adds confidence that inflation is moving toward the central bank’s 2 percent target.

Meanwhile, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley both reported better-than-expected results Tuesday.