North American stocks rallied to record highs Thursday, as investors piled into the markets on strong earnings news and economic reports, and in reaction to a lucrative bid from Rio Tinto for Canadian aluminum giant Alcan.

The S&P/TSX composite index surged 189.91 points, or 1.34%, to 14,356.00, a fresh record close.

Alcan shares surged $8.35 or 8.85%, to $102.75 after Rio Tinto offered US$38.1-billion for the aluminum miner, besting a previous offer from Alcoa Inc.

All 10 TSX main sub-groups finished in the black on the session.

The materials index gained 2.89%, while the gold index moved up 1.72%. Gold for August delivery rose $6.20 to US$668.30 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Goldcorp Inc. gained 70¢, or 2.57%, to $27.91.

Eldorado Gold Corp. shares plummeted $1.94, or 26.87%, to $5.28 CAD after a court decision forced the firm to shut its Kisladag gold mine in western Turkey.

The energy index gained 0.68% despite a slight drop in the price of oil. Light, sweet crude finished down 6¢ to close at US$72.50 a barrel on the Nymex.

Petro-Canada gained $1.10, or 1.88%, to $59.60.

The S&P TSX venture composite index gained 36.36 points, or 1.11%, to 3,305.11.

The Canadian dollar advanced 0.76 of a cent to US95.65¢.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average soared 283.86 points, or 2.09%, to 13,861.73, setting a new all-time record, 170 points above the previous mark set in early June.

The Nasdaq composite index shot forward 49.94, or 1.88%, to 2,701.73, and the S&P500 surged ahead 28.94, or 1.91%, to 1,547.70

Stocks surged after healthy retail sales reassured investors about consumer spending and a US$38 billion mining takeover fed expectations for more deals.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index also closed at a new record and is now less than 6 points from its lifetime high. The Nasdaq rose to its highest in about six-and-a-half years.

Alcoa, which got outbid for Alcan by Rio Tinto was a big contributor to the Dow’s rally. It gained 6.7% in part on speculation that it now would be a takeover target.