The Dow Jones edged higher on Friday ahead of a shortened trading day and after a day off on account of Thanksgiving. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.16% or 73.36 points.
The S&P 500 rose over 0.11%, whereas the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.11%, or 20.84 points.
The Dow is on its way to report the best month since November 2023, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are set to end the month 5% higher.
In the early minutes of trading, only one of the 11 sectoral indices was trading in red. Industrial and information technology were leading the surge while communication services was the only sector in negative.
Trump's choice for Treasury secretary has sparked optimism that tariffs will be more measured, driving gains in US stocks and bonds while weakening the dollar.
Among major companies, Boeing Co. and Qualcomm Inc. logged gains, whereas Microsoft Corp. slipped in early trade.
In 2019 the conversations were focused around trade tensions, yet the Nasdaq soared, Max Kettner, multi-asset chief strategist at HSBC Holdings Plc, pointed out in an interview with Bloomberg TV. What really mattered was the Fed's U-turn, which pushed real rates lower and drove equities higher, he added.
“That's very similar to now—this is still a cutting cycle. It's a fantastic set-up,” said Kettner.
As the US market opened, spot gold rose 0.79% to $2,658.84 an ounce. Crude oil prices rose, with Brent trading 0.10% higher at $73.35 per barrel.
The Bloomberg Dollar Index fell 0.2%, with the British pound little changed at $1.2686, while the Japanese yen rose 1%. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index has extended a weekly decline to more than 1%, snapping eight weeks of gains.
Bitcoin, the largest traded cryptocurrency, rose 1.7% to $96,718.43.
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