S&P 500's best week since February | Big inflation jump | Virgin Galactic posts best day ever

U.S. stocks rose on Friday with the S&P 500 building on its rally to records, as investors bet that higher inflation will be temporary as the economy continues to recover from the pandemic.

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE FRI, JUN 25, 2021 EVENING BRIEF AS OF FRI, JUN 25, 2021 • 04:53 ET DJIA 34433.84 +0.69% +237.02 S&P 500 4280.70 +0.33% +14.21 NASDAQ 14360.39 -0.06% -9.32   Most Active DOW NAME LAST CHG %CHG AAPL 133.11 -0.30 -0.22% MRK 77.20 +0.84 +1.10% NKE 154.35 +20.75 +15.53% S&P 500 NAME LAST CHG %CHG F 15.19 -0.07 -0.46% AAPL 133.11 -0.30 -0.22% BAC 41.62 +0.79 +1.93% NASDAQ NAME LAST CHG %CHG AAPL 133.11 -0.30 -0.22% SIRI 6.52 +0.11 +1.72% TSLA 671.87 -7.95 -1.17%   EDITOR'S NOTE The S&P 500 just closed out its best week since February on Friday, following a rally of more than 2% this week. The major benchmark recovered from a Federal Reserve-induced swoon last week, ending at an all-time high on Friday.   "Stocks believe, as the Fed has told them, that the current sharp rise in inflation is temporary and thus policy removal will take place at a glacial pace. They took this cue and ran with it this week," Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer of Bleakley Advisory Group, told CNBC.   For the week, the Dow rose 3.4% and Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.4%. On Friday, the Dow gained 237 points, helped by a 15.5% jump in Nike's stock after stellar earnings for the shoe giant. The Nasdaq closed around the flat line amid an uptick in U.S. Treasury yields.   The gains came even as a key inflation indicator that the Fed uses to set policy rose 3.4% in May from a year earlier, the fastest increase since the early 1990s, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The reading matched the expectation from economists polled by Dow Jones. The core personal consumption expenditures price index rose 0.5% for the month, which actually was below the 0.6% estimate.   Banks lifted the major averages on Friday after a successful stress test from the Federal Reserve was announced Thursday. The central bank said all 23 institutions in the 2021 exam remained "well above" minimum required capital levels during a hypothetical downturn. Despite the Nasdaq's lackluster performance on Friday, technology stocks rallied this week as inflation concerns subsided. Cathie Wood's flagship growth fund, ARK Innovation, gained more than 5% since Monday.    The major averages also got a boost from the White House's announced infrastructure deal this week. The framework will include $579 billion in new spending on transportation like roads, bridges and rail, electric vehicle infrastructure and electric transit, among other things. Maggie Fitzgerald | CNBC Markets Reporter @mkmfitzgerald TOP NEWS  S&P 500 climbs to another record led by bank shares, notches its best week since February Ex-Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for George Floyd murder Key inflation indicator posts biggest year-over-year gain in nearly three decades Nike shares surge more than 14%, hit record high as $50 billion sales outlook tops expectations Virgin Galactic stock jumps 39% in best day ever after FAA approves passenger spaceflight license Trump lawyers warned by Manhattan DA of possible criminal charges against Trump Organization, CFO Allen Weisselberg Vice President Kamala Harris visits the U.S.-Mexico border as immigration crisis continues Here is how Richard Branson may try to beat Jeff Bezos to space Infrastructure investors like Biden's deal, even though it's smaller than hoped. How to trade it Billionaire megadonor James Simons hires new team of lobbyists as he seeks influence in Biden's Washington   TOP VIDEO Transportation Secretary Buttigieg weighs on White House's bipartisan infrastructure deal   CNBC PRO Jim Cramer says he feels better about Apple's China exposure after Nike earnings   SPECIAL REPORTS Top mega-cap stocks to play catchup to S&P 500 record run, according to traders Cruise industry sails back into summer at U.S. ports   Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2021 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS