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Stocks rose on Thursday as sentiment was boosted by strong earnings from Walmart and Cisco Systems while banks climbed on higher rates.
The Dow Jones Industrials popped 214.66 points to finish Thursday at 25,862.68, led by Walmart and Cisco.
The S&P 500 picked up 25.36 points to 2,876.32
The NASDAQ Composite heightened 75.9 points, or 1%, to 7,898.05. The major indexes also closed higher for the third straight day.
Walmart shares rose 1.4% after the retailer posted first-quarter earnings for fiscal 2020 that topped analyst expectations. The company said it is in a “good position ” to meet its goals for 2019 despite tough comparisons for the second quarter.
Cisco Systems also reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, sending its stock up more than 6.7%. The company also issued stronger-than-forecast revenue guidance.
The gains in Cisco and Walmart offset worries over the ongoing trade spat between China and the U.S. Investors had largely priced in the two countries striking a deal this month. Instead, the U.S. hiked tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports. China retaliated with higher tariffs on $60 billion worth of goods.
Bank shares contributed to Thursday’s gains, as yields rose on stronger-than-forecast economic data. Shares of Citigroup, J.P. Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs all gained more than 1%.
On top of that, President Donald Trump declared on Wednesday a national emergency over threats against American technology. This move is expected to be followed by a ban on U.S. firms doing business with Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications company.
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced the addition of Huawei Technologies and its affiliates to the Bureau of Industry and Security Entity List, making it more difficult for the Chinese telecom giant to conduct business with U.S. companies.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury slumped, raising yields to 2.4% from Wednesday’s 2.37%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.05 to $63.09 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices docked 11 dollars to $1,286.80 U.S. an ounce.
