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US-STOCKS-MARKETS
Wall Street swings higher, shrugging off trade turbulence
NEW YORK, Aug 4, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Wall Street swung to a positive finish on
Friday despite being buffeted more US-China trade turbulence and a set of
disappointing economic data.
The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6 percent to close the
week at 25,462.58, while the broader S&P 500 rose 0.5 percent to end at
2,840.35.
The Nasdaq added a token 0.1 percent, edging to 7,812.01.
The positive close meant all three indices finished slightly higher for the
week.
The day got off to a rocky start after China threatened to put punitive
tariffs on an additional $60 billion in US imports, retaliating against
President Donald Trump’s decision to raise proposed tariffs on $200 billion
in Chinese imports.
The news coincided with the report showing the US trade gap expanded
unexpectedly in June, with the bilateral US deficit with China also rising.
Meanwhile, US job creation cooled slightly in July, and wage gains were
modest.
Maris Ogg of Tower Bridge Advisors said it was surprising that investors
had shown so little reaction to the latest fireworks.
“I guess the market is getting used to this back-and-forth with China,” she
told AFP.
Alan Skrainka of Cornerstone Wealth Management said the jobs report had
shown little wage or inflationary pressures and so did not overly excite
markets.
“More generally, it’s a quiet Friday in August,” he said.
Shares in Apple edged another 0.3 percent higher a day after the company
became first publicly-traded enterprise to surpass $1 trillion in market
capitalization.
DISH Network Corp surged 14.6 percent after beating earnings expectations,
but insurance giant AIG fell 2.7 percent, a day after posting weaker
earnings.
BSS/AFP/HR/1000