Stocks rise as Wall Street heads for best week since July

By STAN CHOE and ALEX VEIGA
AP Business Writers

Stocks are climbing again on Friday, as encouraging reports on the economy and corporate profits help Wall Street firm itself following a shaky few weeks. The S&P 500 was 0.8% higher in afternoon trading and is flirting with its best weekly performance since July. Better-than-expected profit reports from J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Goldman Sachs and others helped to drive the market higher. They dovetailed with a report showing people spent much more at U.S. retailers last month than Wall Street expected. Treasury yields also climbed following the encouraging data. Crude oil prices rose, while natural gas dipped.