Dow Jones Industrial Average Sets Closing Record At 14,673.46

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at its second all-time high in a week Tuesday, led by materials and energy stocks.

The Dow closed at 14,673.46, a gain of 59.98 points, or 0.4 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index also rose 0.4 percent, closing at 1,568.61, less than two points below its own all-time high set April 2.

The S&P 500 also neared its all-time intraday high of 1,576.09, recovering from steep losses last week, the index's worst of 2013. The Dow also touched a record intraday high at 14,716.46. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 15.61 points, or 0.48 percent, to close at 3,237.86.

The prices of metals like copper, gold and silver have rebounded this week after slumping for the first three months of the year on waning demand. Oil is also rising following a sharp decline last week.

Among blue-chip technology stocks, Microsoft Corp (NASDAG:MSFT) jumped 3.6 percent to $29.61 as the Dow's top percentage gainer. Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) shares shot up 3.1 percent to $21.75 while Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ.) rose 1.3 percent to $22.22. The S&P technology sector advanced 0.8 percent while the Philadelphia semiconductor sector gained 0.9 percent.

An S&P index of energy shares rose 0.8 percent, climbing alongside a rise of 0.9 percent in the price of U.S. crude oil, which was up on inflation data from China that reduced concerns about monetary tightening. Halliburton Co (NYSE:HAL) rose 1.8 percent to $39.11 and Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) gained 0.7 percent to $118.64.