S&P 500 ends higher in its strongest Q1 performance in 5 years

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed with modest gains on Thursday, but is on track to record its strongest first quarter performance in five years as investors evaluate the latest batch of economic data and look forward to inflation data.

According to preliminary data, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose by 6.81 points, or 0.13%, to 5,255.30 points at close, while the Nasdaq Composite index lost 20.06 points, or 0.12%, to 16,379.46 points, as reported by “Reuters.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 36.16 points, or 0.09%, to 39,796.24 points.