NEW YORK: Wall Street began 2017 on an optimistic note, posting solid gains early Tuesday, amid apparent rising optimism over the incoming Trump administration.
US stocks repeatedly broke records in early December on hopes that Trump and the Republican-led Congress would cut taxes and streamline regulations. Markets retreated somewhat in the final part of the month.
About 35 minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 19,893.01, up 0.7 percent.
The broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.8 percent to 2,256.89, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.9 percent to 5,431.99.
"There is nothing on the corporate news front driving the positive bias," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.
"It stems partly from some positive economic data, but mostly from a rush of inflows to begin the year and an eagerness to recapture the bullish momentum that faded at the end of last year when trading desks and corner offices cleared out to enjoy the holiday break."
Banks and financials were strong, with American Express climbing 2.1 percent, Goldman Sachs 1.9 percent and Bank of America 2.0 percent.
General Motors rose 1.6 percent despite being criticized by President-elect Donald Trump over its importation of some Mexican-made cars in the US. GM said most of the cars sold in the US of the model in question, the Chevy Cruze, are made in Ohio, with a small fraction imported from Mexico.
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