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US-STOCKS-MARKETS
S&P, Nasdaq edge to fresh records, put trade fears aside
NEW YORK, Aug 29, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The S&P 500 and Nasdaq moved a hair’s
breadth higher on Tuesday to post their third straight record closes as
investors grew increasingly easy with North American trade talks.
Markets finished up slightly after a day of see-sawing trading. US and
Canadian officials were due to begin talks in Washington to salvage the North
American Free Trade Agreement, a subject which had unnerved investors for
much of 2018.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up less than a tenth of a
percentage point at 26,064.02.
The broader S&P 500 was essentially flat, though still in positive
territory at 2,897.52. The index had earlier crossed the 2,900-point mark for
the first time.
Meanwhile the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.2 percent to close at 8,030.04.
Lawmakers in US President Donald Trump’s own Republican party and industry
representatives have urged the White House to keep the trade pact as a three-
nation deal but Trump has threatened to exclude Ottawa from the deal after
striking a bargain with Mexico on Monday.
Jack Ablin of Cresset Wealth Advisors said the trading day had floated
higher on a “general sense that the economy continues to improve.”
“Macro headlines will be taking the center stage now that Q2 earnings
season is behind us,” he told AFP.
“So far, investors are taking tariff news and Trump’s legal troubles pretty
well.”
Earlier in the day, the Conference Board reported that consumer confidence
was at its highest level since October 2000, buoyed by steady job creation
and persistent growth.
Electronics retailer Best Buy sank five percent after offering
disappointing third-quarter earnings guidance.
Meanwhile, electric automaker Tesla continued to fall, extending losses by
2.3 percent after CEO Elon Musk’s decision last week to kill plans to take
the company private and on fears it may not meet key production targets.
BSS/AFP/HR/1005