Wall Street has advanced in relatively low-volume trading on New Year’s Eve as revellers gathered to ring in 2019, marking the end of the worst year for US stocks since 2008.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 265.06 points, or 1.15 per cent, to 23,327.46, the S&P 500 gained 21.16 points, or 0.85 per cent, to 2,506.90, and the Nasdaq Composite added 50.76 points, or 0.77 per cent, to 6,635.28.
Wall Street was challenged for much of 2018 by tariff jitters, rising interest rates, and fears of diminishing corporate profits. December was a particularly trying month for US equities. The S&P 500 saw its worst December since the Great Depression and the Nasdaq confirmed it was in a bear market, or 20 per cent below its high. All three are down about nine per cent since the beginning of the month.
In the new year, investors hope for the removal of question marks that acted as significant headwinds in 2018, including US-China trade negotiations, the path of US Federal Reserve interest rate hikes, slowing corporate growth and economic fallout from the upcoming departure of Britain from the European Union, or Brexit, among other concerns.
On Monday, renewed hopes for a resolution to the US-China trade dispute provided a glimmer of optimism for investors. US President Donald Trump indicated on Twitter that progress had been made toward a potential settlement of trade tensions between the US and China which have plagued stock markets for much of the year.
Trading volume was relatively light, owing to the holiday as the US federal government shutdown entered its 10th day. Healthcare and tariff-sensitive technology stocks, led by Boeing Co and Caterpillar, provided the biggest boost to the S&P 500 on Monday.All 11 major sectors in the S&P 500 ended the session in positive territory. But for the year, only healthcare and utilities ended 2018 higher.
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