US markets end at new record highs on first trading day of 2020

03 Jan 2020 Evaluate

Extending the substantial upward move seen last year, the US markets ended at new record highs on the first trading day of 2020. Traders continued to express optimism about the potential impact of a phase one US-China trade deal, with President Donald Trump saying the deal is due to be signed during a White House ceremony on January 15. Trump said on Tuesday that he would travel to Beijing at a later date to begin talks on phase two of a trade agreement. Recent reports have indicated Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, Beijing's top trade negotiator, will be on hand to sign the phase one deal. The US economy has held up relatively well in the face of the US-China trade war, and the signing of the phase one deal could lift some of the lingering uncertainty hanging over some industries. Financial markets in the US were closed Wednesday for New Year’s Day.

The Labor Department released a report showing initial jobless claims unexpectedly edged slightly lower from an upwardly revised level in the week ended December 28. The report said initial jobless claims slipped to 222,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level of 224,000. Street had expected jobless claims to inch up to 225,000 from the 222,000 originally reported for the previous week. Besides, sentiments were lifted after the People’s Bank of China lowered the amount of reserve cash the country’s banks must hold, which will put more money into the economy. This move will inject about 800 billion yuan in liquidity to the Chinese economy.

Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 330.36 points or 1.16 percent to 28868.80, Nasdaq rose 119.58 points or 1.33 percent to 9092.19 and S&P 500 was up by 27.07 points or 0.84 percent to 3257.85.

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