NEW YORK, Dec 10 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks closed higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 at its highest level since the week Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008, breaching technical levels that suggest the year-end rally will persist.
Based on the latest available data, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 40.26 points, or 0.35 percent, to end unofficially at 11,410.32. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 7.40 points, or 0.60 percent, to finish unofficially at 1,240.40. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 20.87 points, or 0.80 percent, to close unofficially at 2,637.54.
For the week, the indexes also posted gains. The Dow was up 0.2 percent, the S&P 500 was up 1.3 percent and the Nasdaq was up 1.8 percent. (Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Jan Paschal)