US Market ends at records amid trade deal hopes, mergers

The US stock market finished session at records on Monday, 25 November 2019, as the market mood was lifted by increased optimism for the prospect that the United States and China will reach an agreement to de-escalate their trade war after positive trade dialogue between major economies. Meanwhile, a fresh wave of merger and acquisitions activity also bolstered risk sentiments. At closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 190.85 points, or 0.68%, to 27,066.47, while the S&P 500 index added 23.35 points, or 0.75%, to 3,133.64. The Nasdaq Composite grew 112.60 points, or 1.32%, to 8,632.49.

Market participants commenced trading with firm footing on the back of latest wave of optimism after US President Donald Trump said on Friday a trade deal with China is "potentially very close." Chinese President Xi Jinping also reiterated his desire on Friday for a preliminary trade deal. U.S. national security adviser Robert O'Brien also said over the weekend that an initial agreement is still possible by the end of the year. More importantly, China announced that it is willing to impose stricter penalties on intellectual property (IP) violations. IP has been one of the issues in which the two countries had difficulty seeing eye-to-eye on. Therefore, this move by China was widely welcomed by market participants as it is a step towards finalizing a phase one deal. That confidence was reinforced on Monday after reports that both countries were "very close" to a phase one trade deal and that China was willing to negotiate for a phase two or even a phase three trade deal.

Shares of Tiffany rose 6.17%, after French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH reached a deal to acquire the company for 16.2 billion U.S. dollars. "The acquisition of Tiffany will strengthen LVMH's position in jewelry and further increase its presence in the United States," LVMH said in a statement.

On the economic front, the Chicago Fed's national activity index for October fell to a reading of negative-0.71, from negative-0.45 in the previous month. The Dallas Fed manufacturing index rose to a negative-1.3 in November from negative-5.1 in October.

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