US close: Markets inch higher on hopes of trade deal
By Josh White
Date: Tuesday 19 Feb 2019
(Sharecast News) - US stocks finished in the green on Tuesday, as investors digested the latest developments from US-China trade talks, which were resuming in Washington.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.03% to 25,891.32, the S&P 500 added 0.15% to 2,779.76, and the Nasdaq 100 closed 0.16% higher at 7,066.61.
At the open, the Dow reversed much of its losses as the market appeared to be mostly unperturbed by the president's declaration of a national emergency last Friday, in order to fund his border wall last week.
US markets were closed on Monday for the Presidents' Day federal holiday.
In response to that, 16 states filed a federal lawsuit on Monday, challenging Trump's declaration.
Vying for investors' attention, US Cleveland Fed chief Loretta Mester told an audience that official short-term interest rates may need to move "a bit higher".
Mester added that the central bank was neither "far behind or ahead of the curve" when it came to setting the optimal level for official short-term interest rates.
On the data front, the National Association of Homebuilders' monthly confidence index rose four points to a seasonally-adjusted figure of 62 in February, asking the second improvement in a row for the index.
Last month, the index - which tracks views of current sales conditions - gained three points to a reading of 67.
Despite the strong reading, the NAHB cautioned that "affordability remains a critical issue".
The industry body pointed out that builders felt regulations were still "excessive" and that the Trump administration's tariffs had made raw materials much more expensive.
In corporate news, Walmart was up 2.21% after it posted much stronger-than-expected domestic like-for-like sales from its recently wrapped up trading quarter.
Stanley Black & Decker reversed earlier losses to close up 0.12%, after it said it would book a $50m charge against its 2018 earnings per share as a result of the bankruptcy of IPS Worldwide.
Cooper Tire & Rubber was down 2.52% after it revealed better-than-expected adjusted quarterly earnings of $0.66 per share, but sales of $770m - short of analysts' estimates.
Advance Auto Parts dropped 1.68% after it reported a smaller-than-expected increase in its fourth quarter same-store sales of 3.4%, and offered weaker-than-expected guidance on sales for 2019.
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