NEW YORK — Stocks closed at their highest level of the year Tuesday as investors welcomed the latest signal from the Federal Reserve that it will move slowly to raise interest rates. Big names including Apple and Microsoft led technology stocks higher as the market made its biggest gain in two weeks.

Stocks rose after Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen confirmed the Fed isn’t in a hurry to raise interest rates. The Fed made similar points just two weeks ago, but since then members of the Fed’s decision-making committee said they thought it was time for rates to go higher.