NEW YORK, Jan 13: The leading US blue-chip index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, notched up its second straight record close on Friday, largely on upbeat economic news as US retail sales surged higher, traders said.

Stocks closed out the week on a high after the government reported that US retail sales grew at a better-than-expected 0.9pc clip in December, defying Wall Street forecasts which had anticipated a rise of just 0.7 per cent.

The Dow index closed up a strong 41.10 points (0.33 per cent) at a record 12,556.08, breaking the prior record of 12,514.98 points set a day earlier.

The Nasdaq composite finished up a robust 17.97 points (0.72 per cent) at 2,502.82 while the broad-market Standard and Poor's 500 index gained 6.91 points (0.49 per cent) to 1,430.73.

Investors cheered the latest retail-sales snapshot as a sign that consumer resilience is bearing up well despite last year's economic slowdown.

Analysts track consumer spending closely as it accounts for some two-thirds of all US economic growth.

The consumer is obviously doing just fine, despite the weakness in the housing sector, observed Dick Green.

It appears that households had a merry holiday spending money, despite what the retailers may have been claiming, said Joel Naroff of Naroff Economic Advisors.—AFP