S&P 500, Nasdaq eke out records as Apple gains

NEW YORK: The S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged to fresh records Monday following a strong gain by Apple as US stocks eked out gains following sluggish Chinese trade data.

Apple jumped 2.7 percent following favorable comments about the company by the respected Warren Buffett, an Apple investor, in a broadcast interview.

But US stocks stayed within a tight range on the whole as investors digested centrist Emmanuel Macron's election victory in France Sunday, which was expected.

Analysts said US markets were pressured by Chinese data showing slower export growth in April than in the previous month.

The broad-based S&P 500 finished up a hair at 2,399.38, while the Nasdaq Composite Index added less than 0.1 percent at 2,399.38. Both narrowly topped Friday's records.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced less than 0.1 percent to 21,012.28.

Kate Spade & Co. jumped 8.3 percent after it reached a deal to be bought by Coach for $2.4 billion. Coach gained 4.8 percent.

Tribune Media gained 5.2 percent after agreeing to be acquired by Sinclair Broadcast Group for $3.9 billion. Sinclair lost 2.2 percent.

Some pharmaceutical stocks fell with Eli Lilly dropping 2.2 percent, Celgene 3.3 percent and Mylan 1.4 percent.

Tyson Foods fell 6.1 percent after reporting a 21.4 percent drop in second-quarter earnings to $341 million.