US stocks extend relief rally on Trump Greenland shift

NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks opened higher Thursday, extending a relief rally after President Donald Trump retreated on tariffs on European nations connected to his ambition to acquire Greenland.

“With Trump once again walking back all of his threats, the market is breathing a sigh of relief,” said CFRA Research’s Sam Stovall.

But Stovall also described the market as “vigilant,” aware that Trump “could come up with another plan to sort of upset the relations with our major trading partners.”

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7 percent at 49,432.63.

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.6 percent to 6,916.26, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 0.9 percent to 23,424.70.

READ MORE: Wall St rises after Trump rules out ‘force’ to acquire Greenland

Appearing at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday, Trump said he would not use force to take over Greenland.

Later on Wednesday, Trump said he had reached a “framework of a future deal” after meeting NATO chief Mark Rutte, and that he would therefore waive tariffs scheduled to hit European allies on February 1.

Stocks had fallen on Tuesday after Trump threatened tariffs on European countries that pushed back on his Greenland ambitions.

In US data, gross domestic product rose at an annual rate of 4.4 percent in the July to September period, the Commerce Department said, above its initial estimate of 4.3 percent.