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US stocks closed at record highs as a measure of stock market volatility fell to its lowest level this year.

The S&P 500 gained 0.3 per cent on Tuesday, notching up its first three-session winning streak in a fortnight. Financials, utilities and consumer cyclicals were the benchmark index’s best-performing sectors.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2 per cent to also close at a new peak.

The latest advance for stocks came as the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s volatility index dropped fell more than 2 per cent in afternoon trading to as low as 11.87. That marked the lowest intraday level for the Vix, often referred to as Wall Street’s “fear gauge”, since mid-December.

Prices for US government debt rose slightly, sending yields lower. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury was down 0.02 percentage points at 4.41 per cent.