Nasdaq sets new record 15 years after dot-com crash

The Nasdaq exchange smashed its 15-year-old record Thursday, breaking through the old mark set at the peak of the dot-com boom in 2000.

The Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.41 percent (20.89 points) to finish at 5,056.06, finally making up all the nearly 4,000 points lost in a stunning crash that followed the previous closing mark of 5,048.62 set on March 10, 2000.

A final-hour sell-off prevented the S&P 500 from surpassing its own previous record high of six weeks ago, but the markets overall polished off the session in positive territory.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 20.42 points (0.11 percent) at 18,058.69. while the S&P added 4.97 (0.24 percent) at 2,112.93.

"We finally took out the resistance area" after weeks of waiting for the Nasdaq breakthrough, said Peter Cardillo at Rockwell Global Capital.