US markets rally as Apple boosts US investment; Nasdaq leads gains

A major driver of Wednesday’s gains was Apple, which soared 5% after it was announced that the the tech giant will invest an additional $100 billion in US manufacturing.

At mid-market, the S&P 500 rose 0.8% to 6,345.10, the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1% to 21,126.59, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 138 points, or 0.3% to 44,234.60.  A major driver of Wednesday’s gains was Apple, which soared 5% after it was announced that the the tech giant will invest an additional $100 billion in US manufacturing. This brings Apple’s total domestic investment commitment to $600 billion over the next four years.

President Donald Trump also signed an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on all goods imported from India bringing the total tariff to around 50 percent.

Technology stocks led the advance, with the Nasdaq 100 rising 1.07% to 23,263.67. Gains were also seen in transportation stocks, which added 0.5%, while utilities ended the session flat. The broader NYSE index rose 0.31% to 20,521.08, though the Russell 2000, which tracks small-cap stocks, slipped 0.2%.

In commodities, gold edged up 0.05% to $3,436.50, while oil prices dipped slightly, with crude settling at $64.86 per barrel, down 0.46%. Natural gas gained 1.2%, and other key commodities such as copper and silver posted modest increases. Agricultural products, however, saw broad-based declines, with corn, soybeans, and wheat all lower.

Meanwhile, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), often referred to as Wall Street’s fear gauge, dropped 5.1% to 16.94.

At the close, European markets ended mostly higher. The FTSE 100 added 0.24% to finish at 9,164.31, while Germany’s DAX climbed 0.33% to 23,924.36. France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.18% to 7,635.03. The pan-European STOXX 600 slipped slightly, down 0.06% to close at 541.07.

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