Wall Street rallies toward an all-time high

NEW YORK — The U.S. stock market is closing in on an all-time high on Tuesday. The S&P 500 climbed 0.8 percent and is on track to finish the day above its record closing level set in August. Even with worries about war , high inflation and cranked-up pressure from the bond market continuing to weigh on it, the backbone of many 401(k) accounts has soared nearly 24 percent since hitting a bottom in late March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 343 points, or 0.7 percent, as of noon Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was adding 0.8 percent to its own all-time high set the day before. The record-high stock prices are helping investors feel better about their finances, or at least less bad, when Americans are generally feeling more discouraged about keeping up with the fast-rising cost of living. Many of the fears that sent the U.S. stock market to its bottom in March, sparked by the war with Iran , have indeed come true. Oil prices have jumped, which has made inflation worse. That in turn helped send yields higher in bond markets worldwide, which is threatening to slow the eco