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* Philadelphia Semiconductor index hits record high
* Under Armour drops on federal probe, revenue outlook cut
* McDonald's biggest drag on Dow after CEO dismissal
* Indexes up: Dow 0.48%, S&P 0.44%, Nasdaq 0.53%
(Updates to open)
By Arjun Panchadar
Nov 4 (Reuters) - Technology stocks pushed Wall Street's
three main indexes to record highs on Monday, as hopes of a
U.S.-China trade deal and an improving domestic economy boosted
risk appetite.
Washington and Beijing said on Friday they had made progress
in defusing an economically damaging trade war, with U.S.
officials indicating that a deal could be signed this month.
Adding to the upbeat mood, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross
said on Sunday licenses for U.S. companies to sell components to
China's Huawei Technologies Co would come "very shortly".
Eight of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors were higher, with the
energy sector .SPNY gaining the most as oil prices rose, while
technology shares .SPLRCT provided the biggest boost on the
back of a rally in trade-sensitive chip stocks.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor index .SOX touched a fresh
record high, with the index last up 1.4%.
"There is growing enthusiasm over a trade deal, as progress
is being made in these talks," said Peter Cardillo, chief market
economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York.
"Investors are betting that some sort of a deal is on its
way, not a whole deal but something that will at least avoid a
recession. And markets can live with that," he added.
The third-quarter earnings season has been a key driver for
the markets, with 76% of the 360 S&P 500 companies that have
reported results so far beating profit expectations, according
to Refinitiv data.
Investors also took comfort from data on Friday that showed
U.S. jobs growth slowed less than expected in October.
A report on Monday, however, showed new orders for U.S.-made
goods fell more than expected in September and business spending
on equipment was slightly weaker than initially thought,
suggesting that manufacturing remains soft amid the ongoing
trade war. 10:11 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 131.44 points, or 0.48%, at 27,478.80, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 13.58 points, or 0.44%, at 3,080.49 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 44.55 points, or 0.53%, at 8,430.95.
The biggest drag on the blue-chip Dow Jones index was a 2.6%
drop in shares of McDonald's Corp MCD.N after the fast-food
giant dismissed Chief Executive Steve Easterbrook over a recent
consensual relationship with an employee, which the board
determined violated company policy. Under Armour Inc UAA.N fell 14.6% as it lowered its
full-year revenue forecast for a second straight time, a day
after it confirmed a federal probe related to its accounting
practices. In M&A activity, medical device maker Stryker Corp SYK.N
said it would buy smaller rival Wright Medical Group WMGI.O
for about $4 billion in cash. Shares in Wright Medical surged
29.6%, while Stryker fell 4.1%.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.10-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and by a 2.06-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 52 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 101 new highs and 13 new lows.