(Updates to late afternoon; changes dateline, byline)
* S&P 500 hovers below record high
* U.S. to delay tariff increase on Chinese imports
* ECB promises continued stimulus
* CPI, jobless claims better than expected
* Indexes up: Dow 0.48%, S&P 500 0.51%, Nasdaq 0.54%
By Stephen Culp
NEW YORK, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Wall Street advanced on
Thursday, and the S&P 500 hovered a hair's breadth below its
all-time high, buoyed by positive developments on the U.S.-China
trade front and a promise of continued stimulus from the
European Central Bank.
Gains in technology shares helped push all three major U.S.
stock indexes into the black. The Dow was on track for its
seventh straight session of gains, its longest winning streak
since May.
Stocks rose worldwide as China and the United States made
conciliatory gestures ahead of next month's planned talks in
Washington, aimed at easing a trade war that has whipsawed
markets and stoked recessionary fears for months.
President Donald Trump agreed to delay increased tariffs on
billions worth of Chinese goods for two weeks after China
exempted tariffs on a basket of U.S. imports and promised to buy
more U.S. agricultural products. "Markets are still on the trade war seesaw today," said
David Carter, chief investment officer at Lenox Wealth Advisors
in New York. "We had some good news on trade which is why
markets are up, but the seesaw may drop on any signs of
failure."
Investor confidence got an early boost from the European
Central Bank (ECB), which promised continued stimulus to the
ailing euro zone economy through asset purchases. Carter, however, expressed skepticism about the potential
benefits of additional stimulus.
"At this stage of the cycle we're not sure if further ECB or
Fed easing will have a meaningful fundamental impact given that
rates have been so low for so long," Carter said.
The U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to cut key interest
rates by 25 basis points at its upcoming monetary policy meeting
next week, a move intended to head off signs of U.S. economic
softening.
Such softening was not apparent in economic data released by
the Labor Department on Thursday. Core consumer prices rose 2.4%
in August, well above the Fed's 2% inflation target, and jobless
claims dropped last week more than economists expected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 130.34 points,
or 0.48%, to 27,267.38, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 15.4 points,
or 0.51%, to 3,016.33 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
44.43 points, or 0.54%, to 8,214.11.
Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, all but energy
.SPNY were in positive territory, with technology .SPLRCT
and consumer discretionary .SPLRCD enjoying the largest
percentage gains.
Industrial bellwethers Deere & Co DE.N and Caterpillar Inc
CAT.N were down 1.3% and 1.1%, respectively, after Wells Fargo
downgraded their shares to "market perform." Google parent Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O shares rose 1.5% after
Google reached a $1.1 billopn settlement with French authorities
to resolve a fiscal fraud probe, and following a legal victory
over German publishers over fee demands. Shares of Tocagen Inc TOCA.O plunged 78.9% after the
drugmaker's experimental brain cancer treatment failed in a
late-stage study. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
1.18-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.05-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 39 new 52-week highs and one new low; the
Nasdaq Composite recorded 81 new highs and 20 new lows.