US stocks close higher amid trade optimism

0 Comment(s)Print E-mail Xinhua, February 16, 2019
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U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday, as financial stocks outperformed and the market has built up hopes in the possibility of easing U.S.-China trade tensions, after the two sides decided to continue bilateral talks next week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 443.86 points, or 1.74 percent, to 25,883.25. The S&P 500 increased 29.87 points, or 1.09 percent, to 2,775.60. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 45.46 points, or 0.61 percent, to 7,472.41.

A majority of blue chips in the Dow extended solid gains throughout the day, with financial stocks leading the winners. Shares of JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs both rallied over 3 percent around market close.

The financial sector also stood out among the 11 primary S&P sectors around market close, extending the biggest gains of over 2 percent in the tally, in which all the 11 sectors turned green.

Shares of U.S. industrial manufacturer Caterpillar and U.S. manufacturing conglomerate 3M, both sensitive to global trade, rose 2.7 percent and nearly 2 percent respectively, as boosted by positive updates on trade talks between China and the United States.

Adding to market concerns, U.S. President Donald Trump declared Friday a national emergency over security on the U.S.-Mexico border, in a bid to grab more federal funds to build a border wall.

The action would help him circumvent U.S. Congress, which has sparked strong opposition in Washington.

On the economic front, U.S. industrial production fell 0.6 percent in January, which marks the first decline in eight months, the U.S. Federal Reserve said Friday.

Manufacturing alone sank 0.9 percent, the worst decrease in eight months. 

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