Tags: wall street | stocks | dow | industrials | s&p

Stocks Close at Record Highs on Stronger Economic Data

Stocks Close at Record Highs on Stronger Economic Data
(Cupertino10/Dreamstime)

Monday, 02 October 2017 04:05 PM EDT

U.S. stocks started the fourth quarter on a strong note on Monday, with all three major indexes hitting record high closes as data pointed to underlying strength in the economy.

A measure of U.S. manufacturing activity surged to a near 13-1/2-year high in September. Disruptions to the supply chains caused by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma resulted in factories taking longer to deliver goods and boosted raw material prices.

Among the sectors with the biggest gains on Monday were materials, industrials and financials.

Optimism about tax reform also continued to bolster stocks. President Donald Trump last week proposed the biggest tax overhaul in three decades, but offered scant details.

The small-cap Russell 2000 posted another record high close. Small-cap companies are expected to be among the biggest beneficiaries of a tax cut.

"There are a lot of details (on tax reform) that need to be worked out, but the market is certainly willing to believe that something good might happen," said Scott Wren, senior global equity strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute in St. Louis.

Economic data has also helped, he said. "The services number is a better indicator of what's driving the economy, but it's nice to see the manufacturing number pick up."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 152.51 points, or 0.68 percent, to 22,557.6, the S&P 500 gained 9.76 points, or 0.39 percent, to 2,529.12 and the Nasdaq Composite added 20.76 points, or 0.32 percent, to 6,516.72.

All three posted record high closes.

Details were still emerging on the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. A gunman killed at least 58 people and wounded more than 500 more in Las Vegas on Sunday. Shares of gun makers rose, including Sturm Ruger, up 3.5 percent.

General Motors was up 4.4 percent and hit an intraday record high after brokerage Deutsche Bank said the carmaker could launch driverless cars on a large scale in 2020.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.82-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.36-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

About 6.3 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, about even with the daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.

© 2025 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.


StreetTalk
The S&P 500 and the Dow traded just below record highs touched at open on Monday, in a strong start to the fourth quarter, boosted by financials and healthcare stocks and after data pointed to underlying strength in the economy.
wall street, stocks, dow, industrials, s&p
360
2017-05-02
Monday, 02 October 2017 04:05 PM
Newsmax Media, Inc.

Sign up for Newsmax’s Daily Newsletter

Receive breaking news and original analysis - sent right to your inbox.

(Optional for Local News)
Privacy: We never share your email address.
Join the Newsmax Community
Read and Post Comments
Please review Community Guidelines before posting a comment.
 
Get Newsmax Text Alerts
TOP

Newsmax, Moneynews, Newsmax Health, and Independent. American. are registered trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc. Newsmax TV, and Newsmax World are trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc.

NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved