U.S. stocks climbed, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index toward a record high, as jobless claims unexpectedly dropped last week. LinkedIn Corp. and eBay Inc. added at least 2.1 percent after analyst upgrades. CBS Corp. climbed 1.9 percent after introducing a new iPhone and iPad app. Amazon.com Inc. fell 3.1 percent as JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded the shares. E*Trade Financial Corp. lost 5.6 percent after Citadel LLC said it’s selling the rest of its equity stake. The S&P 500 rose 0.3 percent to 1,558.54 at 10:24 a.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 47.48 points, or 0.3 percent, to 14,502.76, extending its record high. Trading in S&P 500 stocks was about 8.1 percent below the 30-day average at this time of day. “It’s a little bit more fuel on the fire,� Jeffrey Davis, chief investment officer at Lee Munder Capital Group, said in a phone interview. The Boston-based firm oversees $5 billion. “It’s been a long time since you’ve seen momentum both on the market and technical front being supported by economic fundamentals. In spite of the fact the market’s not as cheap as it once was, it’s looking like the rally should continue.� The S&P 500 (SPX) is about seven points away from its record closing level of 1,565.15 set in October 2007. The gauge has more than doubled from its bottom in 2009, fueled by corporate earnings that topped estimates and monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve. The Dow has set record closing highs for seven straight days. The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, which measures the cost of using options as insurance against declines in the S&P 500, fell 1 percent to 11.71. The gauge is trading near its lowest level since February 2007. Jobless Claims First-time jobless claims fell by 10,000 to 332,000 in the week ended March 9, the fewest since mid-January, according to data today from the Labor Department in Washington. The median forecast of 49 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for an increase to 350,000. The four-week average declined to a five- year low. A separate report showed wholesale prices in the U.S. climbed in February for a second month, reflecting a jump in energy costs that are now dissipating. In Europe, stocks advanced to a 4 1/2-year high before the region’s leaders begin a two-day Brussels summit. Euro-area finance ministers meet separately tomorrow to discuss a bailout for Cyprus. CBS, LinkedIn CBS climbed 1.9 percent to its highest level since 2000 at $46.83. The most-watched U.S. television network announced plans to offer a full-episode streaming app for the iPad and iPhone. LinkedIn added 2.1 percent to $183.10 as Goldman Sachs raised its price target to $220 from $157. EBay, operator of the world’s largest online marketplace, climbed 2.6 percent to $52.33. Evercore raised its rating on the company to overweight from equalweight. Apple Inc. rose 0.9 percent to $432.06. BTIG Research analyst Walter Piecyk raised his rating on the company to buy from neutral, citing opportunity from yet to be announced products and expectation Apple will return to per share earnings growth in 2014. Amazon slid 3.1 percent to $266.50 after JPMorgan lowered its recommendation on the shares to neutral from overweight, saying some of the online retailer’s key business lines indicate more material deceleration in 2013 gross profit. E*Trade Financial fell 5.6 percent to $11.16. Citadel, its largest shareholder, said late yesterday that it will sell about 27.4 million shares after E*Trade rejected pressure to find buyers and the stock rallied 32 percent this year. Citadel asked E*Trade in 2011 to hire a bank to review strategic alternatives and take immediate action to maximize shareholder value after “catastrophic losses� that had driven the shares down 97 percent since 2007. To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah Pringle in New York at springle1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Lynn Thomasson at lthomasson@bloomberg.net

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