Stocks edge higher; S&P 500 highest since Nov. '07

Stocks edge higher in light trading as snow blankets Northeast; S&P 500 highest since Nov. '07

2/9/2013

NEW YORK — Stocks closed slightly higher today, pushing the Standard & Poor's 500 index to the highest point since November, 2007.

Trading was thin as a winter storm blanketed the Northeast with snow.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 49 points to close at 13,993 today.

The Standard & Poor's 500 rose eight points to 1,518. The Nasdaq composite rose 29 points to 3,194.

Traders were encouraged by a 21 percent decline in the U.S. trade deficit.

Activision Blizzard, which makes “Call of Duty” and other video games, surged 11 percent after posting sharply higher earnings and revenue.

One stock fell for every two that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was thinner than usual because of the storm, 2.9 billion shares versus the recent average of 3.5 billion.