ZCZC
BCN-16
US-STOCKS-MARKETS
Netflix, China stimulus hopes help boost Wall Street
NEW YORK, Jan 16, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – US stocks forged higher on Tuesday as
investors fostered hope of Chinese tax cuts and Netflix raised subscription
rates, lifting the tech sector.
Equities dipped briefly in mid-afternoon trading after the British
parliament massively rejected Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit plan, but
stocks soon resumed their upward course.
The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average closed with a gain of 0.7
percent at 24,065.59 while the S&P 500 added 1.1 percent to settle at
2,610.30.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.7 percent to 7,023.83, finishing above the
7,000 mark for the first time since mid-December.
In Beijing, Chinese officials said they expected more “large-scale
reductions” in taxes and fees this year, delighting investors — who have
shuddered as economic data increasingly shows the world’s second-largest
economy has begun a sharp slowdown.
Healthcare giant UnitedHealth helped lead the Dow higher, rising 3.6
percent after better-than-expected quarterly results.
Meanwhile, streaming giant Netflix soared 6.6 percent after announcing
price hikes, including raising the cost of its most popular monthly plan to
$13 from $11.
The good mood helped lift the tech sector generally. Google-parent
Alphabet and Microsoft each rose about three percent. Apple rose two percent.
Tom Cahill of Venture Wealth Management told AFP investors would warmly
greet any economic stimulus in China.
But he said stocks were entering a “resistance zone” and would find it
hard to rise much higher.
“Companies are having a hard time with earnings and expectations.”
JP Morgan rose 0.7 percent despite reporting earnings that fell short of
expectations, unlike Wells Fargo, which dropped 1.6 percent after announcing
a 1.4 percent decline in quarterly earnings on lower revenues.
BSS/AFP/HR/1000