US close: Records continue as Dow, S&P, Nasdaq continue surge
The records kept coming on Wall Street as equities soared to their fourth straight day of gains, shrugging off a raft of weaker-than-expected economic data.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrials Average had piled on another 210 points, or, 0.89% to 25,289, the S&P 500 gained 19 points to 2,743 and the Nasdaq Composite 59 points to 7,137.
US non-farm payrolls rose by just 148,000 in December, falling short of the 175,000 increase expected by the consensus, amid weak hiring in retail.
Services sector activity also softened last month, with the ISM's Purchasing Managers' Index printing at 55.9, versus a reading of 57.4 for the month before (consensus: 57.8).
Rounding out a poor day in terms of the flow of data, America's shortfall in foreign trade widened from -$48.9bn for October to -$50.5bn in November (consensus: -$49.5bn).
Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said any concerns about a post-tax reform pull-back in equity markets have quickly been quashed, with indices in the US posting decent gains in the first week of the year as investors anticipate another good earnings season.
"We've seen very good earnings growth from companies in the US and Europe in recent quarters and I think the optimism that we’re seeing at the start of the year is potentially being driven by expectations of a similarly positive fourth quarter," he said.
In the background, the president of the Federal Reserve bank of St.Louis, James Bullard sounded a cautious note, telling an audience there was no need for the central bank to tighten policy more quickly.
Bullard also held out the possibility - contrary to the views of many observers - that the new tax bill might unleash "a lot" of investment in the US which might result in an "outsized effect" on the economy.
On the corporate front, tech giant Apple was managing to claw back from early losses after it confirmed that all devices running its mobile and PC operating systems are affected by two major flaws in computer chips.
Dow Jones - Risers
Boeing Co. (BA) $308.84 4.10%
Visa Inc. (V) $118.86 2.39%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $228.73 1.91%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $161.93 1.58%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $39.53 1.38%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $75.42 1.30%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $88.19 1.24%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $175.00 1.14%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $192.25 1.04%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $131.57 0.86%
Dow Jones - Fallers
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $108.34 -0.64%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $111.56 -0.54%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $255.52 -0.51%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $52.48 -0.23%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $132.17 -0.18%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $127.90 -0.16%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $56.99 -0.11%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $86.75 -0.08%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $46.07 -0.02%
General Electric Co. (GE) $18.53 0.05%
S&P 500 - Risers
Spectra Energy Corp. (SE) $13.89 6.85%
Western Union Co. (WU) $20.60 5.91%
Xilinx Inc. (XLNX) $74.15 5.19%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $112.39 4.85%
CVS Health Corp (CVS) $78.45 4.42%
Boeing Co. (BA) $308.84 4.10%
Carmax Inc. (KMX) $71.02 4.09%
Hess Corp. (HES) $52.16 3.10%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $105.42 2.92%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $39.69 2.90%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Southwestern Energy Co. (SWN) $5.59 -4.61%
Range Resources Corp. (RRC) $16.76 -3.68%
Johnson Controls International plc (JCI) $38.42 -3.59%
Wyndham Worldwide Corp. (WYN) $112.44 -2.84%
SCANA Corp. (SCG) $45.02 -2.83%
Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $219.88 -2.62%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $45.80 -2.30%
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO) $19.05 -2.21%
Mallinckrodt Plc Ordinary Shares (MNK) $22.90 -2.14%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $228.17 -2.07%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Xilinx Inc. (XLNX) $74.15 5.19%
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) $112.39 4.85%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $45.64 4.51%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $241.07 3.33%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $39.69 2.90%
Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) $66.37 2.64%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $78.70 2.57%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $64.60 2.54%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $116.91 2.53%
Ctrip.Com International Ltd. Ads (CTRP) $47.37 2.51%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $237.96 -2.83%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $45.80 -2.30%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $103.42 -2.08%
Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (MXIM) $53.26 -2.08%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $228.17 -2.07%
Celgene Corp. (CELG) $104.99 -1.58%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $110.84 -1.10%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $134.40 -0.96%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $187.75 -0.71%
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $116.27 -0.53%