Stocks Closed Out a Strong October

U.S. stocks closed higher on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq ending at a record and major indexes overall closing out a strong October as quarterly results continued to support markets ahead of the conclusion of the Federal Reserve on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 28.50 points, or 0.12%, to 23,377.24. The S&P 500 was up 2.43 points, or 0.09%, to 2,575.26. The Nasdaq Composite added 28.71 points, or 0.43%, to 6,727.67.

Oil climbed on Tuesday, with global benchmark Brent crude logging a fourth monthly gain in a row to settle at a more-than-two-year high. December Brent crude added 47 cents, or 0.8%, to finish at $61.37 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate for December rose 23 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $54.38 a barrel.

American consumers are the most confident they’ve been in nearly 17 years. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index hit 125.9 in October, up from a revised 120.6 in September and the highest reading since December 2000.