Stocks advance; S&P 500 nears record
S&P 500 nears record
NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks advanced Wednesday, sending the Standard & Poor's 500 index to within 0.5 percent of its record, as Intel climbed and energy companies rallied with oil reaching a 2015 high.
Intel rose 4.3 percent after its forecast for the second quarter exceeded some analysts' projections. Energy companies hit an almost five-month high as oil gained for a fifth day. Delta Air Lines climbed 2.6 percent after reporting better-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Netflix soared 12 percent in late trading amid a jump in subscribers.
The S&P 500 increased 0.5 percent to 2,106.63. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 75.91 points, or 0.4 percent, to 18,112.61. The Russell 2000 index added 0.8 percent to an all-time high, while the Nasdaq composite index climbed 0.7 percent to close above 5,000 for the first time in three weeks. About 7.1 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, 6 percent above the three-month average.
Gateway Bank to host hiring event on Tuesday
SARASOTA -- Want to get into the banking business? CareerSource Suncoast and Gateway Bank of Southwest Florida, are set to host a hiring event for tellers and payroll specialists.
Interview will take place Tuesday from 12:30- 4:30p.m. at the CareerSource Suncoast Sarasota Career Center, 3660 N. Washington Blvd.
Anyone interested in interviewing should apply online at gatewaybankswfl.com/aboutus_careers.html and e-mail a resume directly to cmooney@gatewaybankswfl.com.
Universal Orlando raises starting pay
ORLANDO -- Universal Orlando Resort will raise starting hourly pay for its employees to $9.50 on June 1 and $10 a year later.
Currently Universal's starting pay is $9 an hour.The raises mirror those that Walt Disney World has put in place for its workers.
Universal workers making more than the minimum will also get pay increases, spokesman Tom Schroder said.
Universal also said it will begin hiring "thousands" of new employees for both summer and permanent positions.
N.Y. settles suit against Ernst & Young over audit
ALBANY, N.Y. -- New York's attorney general has settled a lawsuit against Ernst & Young over auditing at the now-defunct investment bank Lehman Brothers for $10 million.
The attorney general's office says that will help pay restitution to investors in Lehman securities, along with $99 million Ernst & Young is paying to settle a federal class action.
Authorities say the bank transferred securities to overseas entities in return for cash, with an understanding it would quickly repurchase them, but it showed them as sales, used the money to pay down liabilities and temporarily presented misleading impressions of its financial health.
The lawsuit said Ernst & Young approved Lehman's accounting and issued unqualified opinions certifying financial statements.
Ernst & Young says it's pleased to put the matter behind it "with no findings of wrongdoing."
Herald staff and wire reports
This story was originally published April 16, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Stocks advance; S&P 500 nears record ."