News Summary: S&P 500 closes at five-year high
News Summary: Stock 500 closes at five-year high, with improving outlook in China, Europe
HITTING THE HIGHS: Stocks edged higher, pushing the Standard & Poor's 500 index to its highest close in five years. The S&P 500 has advanced more than 3 percent this year.
GLOBAL GROWTH: The outlook for global growth appears a little brighter. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the struggling euro zone should start growing again later this year and a report from China showed that export growth in the world's second-largest economy picked up in December.
BIG MOVERS: Ford was among the gainers after it said that it would double its dividend. Supervalu jumped after reaching a $3.3 billion deal to sell five of its biggest grocery chains — Albertsons, Acme, Jewel-Osco, Shaw's and Star Market — to an investor group led by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management.
