S&P 500 Gains Have Wiped Out The Market Downturn

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) and the S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) climbed to record intraday highs on Thursday, buoyed by a batch of better-than-expected earnings, as congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, continued into its second day.

The gains put a new gloss on the U.S. benchmark index, which has been outshining most of its global peers this year, with investors showing more confidence in the underlying economy, corporate earnings and central bank policy.

Benchmark S&P 500 up nearly 15 percent for the year

With the benchmark S&P 500...