Tech stocks power Wall St indexes to fresh record-highs; Netflix up 3%

Global stocks came off all-time highs today as minutes from the ECB's last meeting showed policymakers were concerned about euro's rapid rise

The three main US indexes climbed to fresh record-highs for the fourth day in a row on Thursday, propelled by gains in technology stocks.

Eight of the 11 major S&P indexes were higher, led by the information technology sector, which got a boost from Apple, Microsoft and Amazon.com.

Tech stocks, which have led much of the recent rally, have risen about 26 per cent this year.

Data on Thursday pointed to underlying strength in the economy despite weather-related disruptions, with the trade deficit narrowing in August and jobless claims falling more than expected last week.

Focus will now shift to the more comprehensive monthly jobs report, which is due on Friday.

Global stocks came off all-time highs on Thursday as minutes from the European Central Bank's last meeting showed policymakers were concerned about the euro's rapid rise.

Investors are also gearing up for the upcoming third-quarter corporate earnings.

Earnings of S&P 500 companies are expected to rise 5.5 per cent in the quarter from a year earlier, according to Thomson Reuters data. That would be down from double-digit growth in the first two quarters, but many strategists are optimistic results will be better than expected.

At 9:46 am EDT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 16.86 points, or 0.07 per cent, at 22,678.5, the S&P 500 was up 4.39 points, or 0.17 per cent, at 2,542.13.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 22.88 points, or 0.35 per cent, at 6,557.51.

Shares of Constellation Brands were up 3.4 per cent after the brewer beat Wall Street's profit estimates for the ninth straight quarter.

Microsoft was up 0.4 per cent after Canaccord Genuity raised its rating on the stock to "buy".

Biogen was up 4.6 per cent after Morgan Stanley upgraded its rating on the stock to "overweight".

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 1,657 to 839. On the Nasdaq, 1,452 issues rose and 924 fell.