Wall Street rises with Dow & S&P refreshing record highs

Major equity indexes in the U.S. extended their upside on the last trading day of the third quarter on the back of robust gains witnessed in tech shares.

Both the S&P and Nasdaq rose to fresh record highs while the Dow Jones remained relatively calm. Nonetheless, all three indexes were able to close the month higher in September.

Commenting on Wall Street's monthly performance, “It has been upwardly biased certainly through the entire month, and we are still locked into positive momentum. But now we are getting into October, and it is always interesting when the fourth quarter rolls around because that is when the volatility comes,” Gordon Charlop, a managing director at Rosenblatt Securities in New York, told Reuters. 

The S&P 500 Information Technology Index (SPLRCT) added 0.6% to close the fourth day in a row higher, erasing last week's sharp losses.

In the meantime, following US President Donald Trump's remarks later in the session, the S&P 500 Financials Index (SPSY) gained traction to end the day 0.12% higher. Trump told reporters that he has had four meetings for the Fed chairman position and would be announcing his decision in the next two or three weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 16.45 points, or 0.07%, to 22,397.65, the S&P 500 rose 8.59 points, or 0.34%, to 2,518.65 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 40.94 points, or 0.63%, to 6,494.39.

Reuters reports:

• For the week, the S&P rose 0.67%, the Dow added 0.23%, the Nasdaq gained 1.07%
• For the month, the S&P rose 1.9%, the Dow added 2.1%, the Nasdaq gained 1.05%
• For the quarter, the S&P rose 4%, the Dow added 4.9%, the Nasdaq gained 5.8%
• The Russell 2000 rose 2.8% this week, 6.1% for September, 5.3% for the quarter

Headlines from the NA session:

• US Pres. Trump to decide on next Fed Chair in 2-3 weeks
• WTI pares daily gains on rising US oil rig count, remains positive on week
• US Consumer Sentiment: Consumers appear to be weathering the storms - Wells Fargo
• The macro environment favours cyclical currencies - ANZ
• What has changed in EM - BBH
• Fed's Harker: Still pencils in a rate hike in December, three rate hikes for next year
• Atlanta Fed: GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth in Q3 edged higher to 2.3%
• US: Personal income increased $28.6 billion (0.2%) in August
• ISM: September Chicago Business Barometer rises sharply to 65.2
• UoM: Consumer sentiment remained largely unchanged