Dow Jones Industrial Average surges 237 points
The Dow rallies 237.44 points, or 0.89%, to close at 27,024.80. The S&P 500 gained 1% to end the day at 2,995.68. The Nasdaq Composite surged 1.24% to 8,148.71. Investors cheered a slew of better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
Earnings lead the charge as trade talks take a backseat
J.P. Morgan Chase, UnitedHealth and Johnson & Johnson were among the companies whose results drove the major stock indexes higher. J.P. Morgan had record revenue for the previous quarter, with CEO Jamie Dimon highlighting he strength of the U.S. consumer. Pharmacy benefits revenue boosted UnitedHealth’s bottom line while strength in prescription drugs lifted Johnson & Johnson’s results. Most importantly, this string of positive results distracted investors from the lingering uncertainties around U.S.-China trade talks.
JP Morgan rises to all-time high, UNH surges
J.P. Morgan Chase shares jumped 3.01% and hit a record high. UnitedHealth, meanwhile, surged 8.16%. Johnson & Johnson climbed 1.62%.
What happens next?
Wall Street’s focus will largely remain on corporate earnings. Bank of America, Abbot Laboratories, Netflix and IBM are among the companies scheduled to report on Wednesday. Retail sales data is also set for release Wednesday morning. Read more here.