US stocks on record-setting trajectory after Trump's tax cut remarks

 U.S. stocks were on a record-setting trajectory in the week, with the Nasdaq Composite Index closing at a record high four times in five sessions, as U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks on tax cut boosted investor sentiment.

On Monday, U.S. stocks ended lower after wavering in a tight range, as uncertainties of a legal fight against Trump's travel ban weighed on Wall Street sentiment.

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks rebounded, with the Nasdaq eking out a new closing record, as investors digested a batch of economic data and corporate earnings reports.

On Wednesday, U.S. stocks finished mixed Wednesday, with the Nasdaq eclipsing previous day' s closing record, as investors digested a slew of corporate earnings reports.

On Thursday, Wall Street rallied, with all three major indices closing at record highs, after Trump said he would give an announcement regarding taxes in the next few weeks.

On Friday, U.S. stocks kept rising, with all three major indices refreshing record highs, as investors continued to cheer over Trump's promise to release a tax cut plan in the coming weeks.

"Lowering the overall tax burden on American business is big league ... that's coming along very well. We're way ahead of schedule, I believe. And we're going to announce something I would say over the next two or three weeks that will be phenomenal in terms of tax," Trump said in a meeting on Thursday with U.S. airline executives.

Analysts said Trump's remarks and the implication of nearly imminent movement spurred the market.

The earnings season was also in spotlight. The latest data from Thomson Reuters showed that the S&P 500 companies' blended earnings in the fourth quarter of 2016 are expected to rise 8.4 percent year on year, while the revenues are forecast to increase 4.4 percent.

On the economic front, U.S. import prices advanced 0.4 percent in January, following a 0.5-percent increase in December, while U.S. export prices increased 0.1 percent in January, after rising 0.4 percent the previous month.

In the week ending Feb. 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 234,000, a decrease of 12,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 246,000.

U.S. goods and services deficit was 44.3 billion U.S. dollars in December, down 1.5 billion dollars from the revised level in November. For 2016, the goods and services deficit increased 1.9 billion dollars, or 0.4 percent, from 2015.

The number of job openings was little changed at 5.5 million on the last business day of December, the U.S. Labor Department reported Tuesday.

For the week, all three major indices posted solid gains, with the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq going up 1.0 percent, 0.8 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.

source: Xinhua