A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on April 20, 2015. Credit: Getty Images / Spencer Platt
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. The Nasdaq composite has closed at a record high for the first time since the dot-com bubble of 2000.. The index gained 20 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 5,056 Thursday, beating its previous high by 8 points. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 20 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 18,058. The Standard & Poor's 500 gained 4 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 2,112, just below its own record from last month.. The Nasdaq tracks all stocks listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, a rival to the New York Stock Exchange.. A lot has changed since the dot-com era, when the index was more heavily weighted with technology and telecom companies. These days, biotechnology and consumer services companies make up significant parts of the index.. As the markets closed, the benchmark U.S. crude oil was up 2.29 percent at $57.55 on the New York Mercantile Exchange
