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Nov. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. markets posted small gains while still touching record highs on Monday -- the first day of trading in November. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 94.28 points, or 0.26%, while the S&P 500 rose 0.18% and the Nasdaq Composite closed the day up 0.63% as all three major indexes hit record highs.
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Markets got a boost on Monday as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen once again called on Congress to raise the debt ceiling.
"There are a number of ways in which the debt ceiling can be raised," she told reporters. "I strongly believe that it is bipartisan responsibility to do this. There is a way for Democrats to do it entirely on their own."
The small-cap benchmark Russell 2000 increased 2.6%, recording its best day since Aug. 27, providing a boost to the Nasdaq.
Shares of Tesla gained 8.49% after the electric car maker reached a $1 trillion market cap last week.
Stocks that would benefit from economic recovery in response to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic gained Monday with Ford rising 5.09% and Occidental Petroleum increasing 3.82%.
"In our view, the key story arc driving equities is the strengthening global recovery," Fundstrat's Tom Lee wrote in a note to clients. "COVID-19 trends are improving, but with vaccinations and boosters, the improvement in healthcare risk could materially accelerate in 2022."
On the contrary shares of Apple fell 0.56%, while Amazon dropped 1.61%.
Markets are coming off a strong October with all three major indexes closing the month on record highs.
The Dow rose 5.8% in October, the S&P 500 gained 6.9% and the Nasdaq Composite increased 7.3%.
