In the case of data that doesn't change, that's better off in a read-only database or read-only file. SQL Server won't even attempt to take locks on read-only data, and thus avoids the processing overhead involved. The performance boost is minor, but in a busy system it can make a difference.

With(nolock) has some uses very occassionally. Inappropriate use of it is the single most common error I've ever seen in database devs. Most don't understand that it can result in all kinds of junk data being used in important business processes.