Stocks closed slightly higher on Wall Street after a report showed U.S. shoppers opened their wallets at stores last month by much more than expected. The S&P 500 eked out a gain of 0.3% Wednesday after erasing an early loss.

The Dow was up slightly and the Nasdaq composite ended higher. The surprisingly strong report on retail sales offers hope that the most important part of the U.S. economy, consumer spending, can stay afloat despite worries about a possible recession looming.

The gains were tempered by concerns that the strong report could add more fuel to inflation, which remains high.

On Wednesday:

The S&P 500 rose 11.47 points, or 0.3%, to 4,147.60.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 38.78 points, or 0.1%, to 34,128.05.

The Nasdaq composite rose 110.45 points, or 0.9%, to 12,070.59.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 21.06 points, or 1.1%, to 1,960.97.

For the week:

The S&P 500 is up 57.14 points, or 1.4%.

The Dow is up 258.78 points, or 0.8%.

The Nasdaq is up 352.47 points, or 3%.

The Russell 2000 is up 42.16 points, or 2.2%.

For the year:

The S&P 500 is up 308.10 points, or 8%.

The Dow is up 980.80 points, or 3%.

The Nasdaq is up 1,604.11 points, or 15.3%.

The Russell 2000 is up 199.72 points, or 11.4%.

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