U.S. stocks lower as investors rotate out of tech ahead of Jackson Hole
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* China cuts banks' reserve ratios again to spur economy
* U.S. weekly jobless claims fall
* Hanesbrands slips after report of Wells Fargo downgrade
* Indexes up: Dow 0.66%, S&P 0.53%, Nasdaq 0.87%
(Updates to open)
By Manas Mishra
Jan 2 (Reuters) - Wall Street's major indexes began the new
year at record levels on Thursday, as fresh stimulus from
Beijing to prop up its slowing economy added to optimism fueled
by easing trade tensions and an improving global outlook.
China's central bank said on Wednesday it would cut the
amount of cash that all banks must hold as reserves, the eighth
such cut since early 2018, injecting fresh stimulus into the
economy, while boosting global markets. MKTS/GLOB
All three major indexes ended higher on Tuesday after
President Donald Trump said an initial U.S.-China trade pact
would be signed on Jan. 15. Trump also said he would later
travel to Beijing to begin talks on the next phase. "Trade continues to be a driver for this market," said Kim
Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners in
Pittsburgh.
"We're trying to figure out when news about trade gets baked
in, but talks about phase 2 shows that this isn't a one and done
sort of thing to just repair the damage of the trade war of last
year."
At 09:59 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was up 187.72 points, or 0.66%, at 28,726.16, the S&P 500 .SPX
was up 17.19 points, or 0.53%, at 3,247.97. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 77.68 points, or 0.87%, at 9,050.29.
Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed 2019 with their
biggest annual percentage gains since 2013, while the Dow
notched its biggest yearly percentage gain since 2017.
Latest data from the U.S. Labor Department showed that the
number of Americans filing claims for jobless benefits edged
lower last week, a positive signal for the U.S. labor market
amid recent signs that new claims may be trending slightly
higher. The tech sector .SPLRCT was the biggest gainer among the
11 major S&P sectors, with Apple Inc AAPL.O and chipmakers
providing the biggest boost.
Among stocks, Hanesbrands Inc HBI.N slipped 2% after a
report that Wells Fargo has downgraded the apparel maker's
shares to "underweight". Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 1.92-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 1.39-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 39 new 52-week highs and one new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 80 new highs and two new lows.