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* China to halve extra tariffs on some U.S. imports
* Twitter advances as quarterly revenue tops $1 bln
* Kellogg declines after earnings outlook disappoints
* Indexes up: Dow 0.26%, S&P 0.30%, Nasdaq 0.55%
(Changes quote, adds details; updates prices)
By Medha Singh
Feb 6 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose for a fourth straight
session on Thursday on China's efforts to contain the economic
fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, while investors assessed
a mixed batch of corporate earnings.
The benchmark S&P 500 .SPX and the Dow Industrials .DJI
scaled new highs at the open as China said it would halve extra
tariffs on some U.S. goods, as it looks to prop up an economy
hit by shutdowns and travel restrictions due to the outbreak.
"The fear investors had when the virus first started seems
to have abated somewhat," said Rick Meckler, partner, Cherry
Lane Investments, a family investment office in New Vernon, New
Jersey.
Markets have rallied this week as a string of positive U.S.
economic data has helped mitigate worries, putting the S&P 500
on course for its best week in eight months.
Latest data showed the number of Americans filing for
unemployment benefits dropped to a nine-month low in the prior
week. It comes ahead of the crucial U.S. jobs report on Friday.
However, the impact of the health emergency in China
continued to show up in corporate reports. Chipmaker Qualcomm
Inc QCOM.O flagged a potential threat to the mobile phone
industry from the outbreak. Its shares fell 2%.
At 11:36 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
rose 0.26% to 29,367.66.
The S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.30% to 3,344.62 and the Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was up 52.15 points, or 0.55%, at 9,560.83.
Eight of the 11 major indexes were higher, led by a 0.6%
gain for consumer staple stocks .SPLRCS .
More than 70% of 305 S&P 500 companies that have reported so
far have exceeded quarterly earnings estimates, according to
IBES data form Refinitiv.
An 8.8% slide in Becton, Dickinson and Co BDX.N weighed
the most on the S&P 500 after the medical technology company
lowered its full-year revenue and profit forecasts.
Kellogg Co K.N tumbled 7.9% after it forecast full-year
earnings well below market expectations. Philip Morris International Inc PM.N gained 4.1% after the
Marlboro cigarettes maker topped quarterly profit estimates.
Twitter Inc TWTR.N gained about 17.3% after the
micro-blogging platform touched $1 billion in quarterly revenue
for the first time ever.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.12-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 1.08-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 58 new 52-week highs and no new lows,
while the Nasdaq recorded 98 new highs and 28 new lows.