NEW YORK – The three major US stock indexes posted record closing highs and the S&P 500 registered a fifth straight week of gains on Friday as investors brushed aside worries over the progress of US-China trade talks and as Walt Disney shares rose.
Doubts about trade progress resurfaced earlier in the day when President Donald Trump, in remarks to reporters at the White House, said he has not agreed to a rollback of US tariffs sought by China.
On Thursday, officials from both countries said that the United States and China had agreed to such a deal.
Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York, said that while the market was initially volatile because of Trump’s remarks, it climbed right back.
“The feeling now is that before the end of the year we’re going to see some type of deal,” Ghriskey said, even if it is a partial one.
The Cboe volatility index posted its lowest closing level since July 24.
Helping to boost the S&P 500, Walt Disney Co gained 3.8 percent a day after it reported quarterly results that showed it spent less than it had projected on its online streaming service, Disney+. Disney’s popular theme parks and a remake of “The Lion King” lifted earnings.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 6.44 points, or 0.02 percent, to 27,681.24, the S&P 500 gained 7.9 points, or 0.26 percent, to 3,093.08 and the Nasdaq Composite added 40.80 points, or 0.48 percent, to 8,475.31.
For the week, the S&P 500 rose 0.8 percent, posting a fifth straight week of gains, while the Nasdaq gained 1.1 percent, closing out its sixth straight week of gains. The Dow was up 1.2 percent for the week. – Reuters
