The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment aid hit a five-year low last week, and residential construction surged in December, the latest signs that the U.S. economic recovery remains on track.

A report from the Commerce Department showed housing starts jumped 12.1 percent last month to their highest level since June 2008. Permits for future home construction were also the highest in about 41/2 years.

That good news, along with some strong corporate earnings reports on Wall Street sent the Dow Jones and S&P 500 indexes to their highest level in five years Friday, according to the USA Today.

(READ the Reuters story in Columbus Dispatch)