Bank of America agreed to pay bond insurer MBIA $1.7 billion to settle a dispute over faulty mortgage securities issued during the U.S. housing boom.

The Dow fell as much as 67 points in the morning, then turned higher in the afternoon to end with a modest gain of nearly 50 points.

Stocks closed lower on Wall Street as investors worried that a controversial proposal to seize money from depositors in Cyprus could set off another bout of anxiety over Europe's shared currency.

The Dow Jones industrial average notched its ninth gain in a row, giving the index its longest winning streak in more than sixteen years.

A tiny gain gave the Dow its eighth consecutive increase Tuesday, long enough to match its longest series of gains since February 2011.

The Dow pushed further into record territory Thursday, having surpassed its previous all-time high two days ago. The catalyst was the latest evidence that hiring is picking up.

Stocks had their worst drop in more than three months as the prospect of political paralysis in Italy raised the specter of Europe's debt crisis flaring up again.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 47.46 to 14,018.70 Tuesday. That is 146 points from its record close of 14,164.53 set in October 2007. The Standard & Poor's 500 gained 2.42 points ...

The Dow Jones industrial average ended the month up 5.8 percent, its strongest January since 1994, according to S&P Capital IQ data.

S&P 500 has longest winning streak since '04; first close above 1,500 since start of recession

Stocks dropped on Wall Street for a fifth straight day as hope for a budget deal faded.

The Standard & Poor's 500 fell as much as 8 percent during the five weeks following the 2000 election, between George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore.