* U.S close to finalizing parts of trade pact with China
* S&P hovers near all-time high
* Intel jumps after raising revenue forecast
* Amazon drops on weak holiday-quarter forecast
* Charter Communications gains on upbeat quarterly results
* Indexes up: Dow 0.65%, S&P 0.43%, Nasdaq 0.62%
(Adds comments; updates to early afternoon)
By Arjun Panchadar
Oct 25 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 on Friday rose above its
record closing high after Washington said it was close to
finalizing parts of a trade pact with Beijing.
The benchmark index .SPX closed at 3,025.86 points after
touching a record high of 3,027.98 on July 26. On Friday, the
index touched a high of 3,027.39.
The U.S. Trade Representative's office said on Friday that
deputy-level talks would carry on, but provided no details on
the areas of progress. President Donald Trump said the United
States was doing "very well" in the negotiations. "The market had been a little back and forth the last
several sessions, waiting for something substantial to happen
and progress in trade talks with the goal of finalizing a deal
would be certainly substantial," said Andre Bakhos, managing
director at New Vines Capital LLC in Bernardsville, New Jersey.
The developments rounded off a strong week for equity
markets, which were boosted by a clutch of better-than-expected
third-quarter earnings reports. The S&P 500 was set for its best
week in seven, while the Nasdaq eyed its biggest percentage gain
in eight weeks.
Intel Corp INTC.O jumped 7.2% and was on course for its
best day since January 2018 after issuing an upbeat forecast,
helping lift the Philadelphia Semiconductor index .SOX to a
record high.
But shares of Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O dropped 1.5% after the
e-commerce giant forecast revenue and profit for the crucial
holiday quarter below estimates, citing fierce competition.
Investors are now counting on the Federal Reserve to lower
borrowing costs for the third time this year at its policy
meeting next week after a clutch of poor economic data earlier
in October. At 12:59 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was up 173.72 points, or 0.65%, at 26,979.25, and the S&P 500
was up 13.06 points, or 0.43%, at 3,023.35. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 50.82 points, or 0.62%, at 8,236.61.
Boeing Co BA.N dropped 1.2% after Indonesian authorities
looking into the Lion Air crash said the world's largest
planemaker failed to grasp risks in the design of cockpit
software on its 737 MAX jet. Apparel maker VF Corp VFC.N fell 6.8% after reporting
lower-than-expected second-quarter revenue, hurt by sluggish
demand for its North Face and Vans brands. Shares of Charter Communications Inc CHTR.O gained 7.3%
after the cable operator posted better-than-expected quarterly
results as it attracted more customers for its broadband
services, offsetting a drop in pay TV subscribers. The next round of earnings due next week includes Apple Inc
AAPL.O , Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O , Pfizer Inc PFE.N and Merck &
Co Inc MRK.N .
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.59-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and by a 1.97-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 39 new 52-week highs and three new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 77 new highs and 50 new lows.