(For a live blog on the U.S. stock market, click LIVE/ or
type LIVE/ in a news window)
* Major U.S. stock averages set to cap 3-day sell-off
* J&J gains as tests show no asbestos in baby powder
* Alphabet advances after Sundar Pichai named CEO
* Indexes up: Dow 0.74%, S&P 500 0.78%, Nasdaq 0.66%
(Updates to late afternoon, changes dateline, byline)
By Stephen Culp
NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Wall Street gained ground on
Wednesday in a broad-based rally as investor sentiment
brightened after U.S. President Donald Trump said talks with
China on an interim trade deal were going "very well."
All three major U.S. stock indexes were on course to snap a
three-day losing streak, with financials and tariff-sensitive
technology stocks leading the charge.
Trump's comments supported a Bloomberg report that the
world's two largest economies were closer to agreeing how many
tariffs would be rolled back in a "phase one" trade deal.
"(The report) saying that White House officials are much
closer to a trade agreement is what the market's focusing on
today," said Robert Pavlik, chief investment strategist, senior
portfolio manager at SlateStone Wealth LLC in New York.
Fears that a stalemate in negotiations could lead to new
tariffs taking effect as scheduled on Dec. 15 have made market
participants more risk averse in recent days, with the major
U.S. stock averages backing off last week's record highs.
"Between now and Dec. 15, you'll see more tough talk and
you'll probably see the president back off tariffs," Pavlik
added. "But anything could happen."
"If they delay (the Dec. 15 tariffs) and keep negotiating,
the market could reach new highs."
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 203.05 points,
or 0.74%, to 27,705.86, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 24.26 points,
or 0.78%, to 3,117.46 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
56.60 points, or 0.66%, to 8,577.24.
All 11 major sectors of the S&P 500 were in positive
territory, with energy .SPNY enjoying the biggest percentage
gain, boosted by a 4.2% jump in crude prices CLc1 .
Trade-vulnerable industrials .SPLRCI were up 1.0%, the
sector's best day in a month.
Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O rose 2.1% following its announcement
that Sundar Pichai would take the helm as CEO. Shares of Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N advanced 1.5% after
recent tests showed its baby powder was asbestos-free. U.S. Food
and Drug Administration investigations reported trace amounts of
the carcinogen in the product earlier this year. Online travel platform Expedia Group Inc EXPE.O jumped
7.0%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500, after chair Barry
Diller announced the resignations of the company's chief
executive and financial officers. On the economic front, market participants largely shrugged
off weak November data from ADP, which reported fewer private
payroll additions than expected, and from the Institute for
Supply Management's PMI report, which showed the services
sector's growth losing steam. Investors are now eyeing the U.S. Labor Department's
November employment report, expected on Friday.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
3.12-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.97-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the
Nasdaq Composite recorded 53 new highs and 32 new lows.