US STOCKS-Wall St steadies after trade tension-driven selloff

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* Trump says U.S. doing well in trade talks with China
* Dollar General jumps after Q1 profit beat
* Keysight jumps after upbeat quarterly results
* Indexes up: Dow 0.33%, S&P 0.35%, Nasdaq 0.41%

(Updates prices to afternoon)
By Amy Caren Daniel
May 30 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks inched higher for the first
time this week on Thursday, as President Donald Trump said trade
talks with China were going well, offering a glimmer of hope to
markets roiled by worries that a protracted dispute would slow
global growth.
A senior Chinese diplomat said provoking trade disputes is
"naked economic terrorism", even as Trump said Beijing wanted to
make a deal with Washington. The escalating dispute has weighed heavily on Wall Street
this month, putting its main indexes on track for losses of at
least 5% in May. The benchmark S&P 500 .SPX is now 5.8% away
from its all-time high of 2,954.13 hit on May 1.
"We're seeing just a little bit of a relief to markets after
the selling over the past couple of days, whether it morphs into
something more than that it's hard to say," said Paul Nolte,
portfolio manager at Kingsview Asset Management in Chicago
"Markets are focused on trade talks, or lack there of. We're
starting to see more and more signs that the economy is looking
more recessionary that expansionary."
U.S. treasury yields fell on Thursday and hovered near
20-month lows as investors sought safety in government bonds.
US/
The yield curve between three-month bills and 10-year notes
remained inverted, with money markets pricing in roughly two
U.S. rate cuts by the start of next year.
Interest-rate sensitive bank stocks .SPXBK fell 0.55%,
while the broader financial sector .SPSY declined 0.10%.
Technology stocks .SPLRCT , among the worst performing S&P
sectors this month, rose 0.60% and boosted markets.
The sector was helped by a 11.7% jump in Keysight
Technologies KEYS.N after the electronic measurement equipment
maker reported better-than-expected quarterly results and
announced a $500 million share buyback plan.
Apple Inc AAPL.O , Microsoft Corp MSFT.O and Intel Corp
INTC.O also rose and offered support.
Also helping sentiment was data that confirmed domestic
economic growth accelerated in the first quarter, but there were
signs that the temporary boost from exports and inventory
accumulation was already fading. At 12:52 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 81.69 points, or 0.33%, at 25,208.10. The S&P 500 .SPX was
up 9.62 points, or 0.35%, at 2,792.64 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 31.00 points, or 0.41%, at 7,578.31.
The energy sector .SPNY fell 0.85%, the most among the
four major S&P sectors trading lower.
Among other stocks, Dollar General Corp DG.N jumped 7.9%
after the discount retailer's same-store sales and profit topped
expectations.
Viacom Inc VIAB.O climbed 6.1% after report that CBS Corp
CBS.N is preparing for merger talks with the media company.
CBS rose 3.6%.
PVH Corp PVH.N plunged 14.2%, the most among S&P
companies, after the Calvin Klein owner cut its annual profit
forecast as it grapples with tariffs and slowing retail growth.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.51-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and by a 1.35-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded one new 52-week high and 23 new lows,
while the Nasdaq recorded 22 new highs and 96 new lows.