U.S. stocks gained Thursday despite oil prices that reached the 68-dollar-a-barrel mark and closed at a new record high. Advancing oil prices, which have challenged U.S. stock prices all year, could not stop another rally as investors felt the high prices are not yet a serious threat to a sound economy. "Our view on oil prices is that although they have spiked and they are beginning to be a drag on the economy, they are still not at crisis levels," Ben Halliburton, chief investment officer at Tradition Capital Management, told the Bloomberg financial news agency. Oil increased 0.3 per cent to 67.49 dollars a barrel in New York, a new record, after touching 68 dollars a barrel in Thursday's trading. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 15.76 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 10,450.63. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 2.78 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 1,212.37. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 5.46 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 2,134.37. On currency markets, the dollar declined against the euro, falling to 81.32 euro cents from 81.49 euro cents on Wednesday. The U.S. currency also dipped against the Japanese yen, closing at 110.08 yen from 110.23 yen on Wednesday. Gold fell 1.15 dollars to 438.85 dollars per fine ounce.
