Wednesday, 26 August 2015 19:42
NEW YORK: Wall Street equities jumped in opening trade Wednesday as investors tried to snap a six-day losing streak prompted by turmoil in the Chinese stock market.
About 20 minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 15,985.73, up 319.29 points (2.04 percent).
The broad-based S&P 500 rose 39.09 (2.09 percent) to 1,906.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 105.82 (2.35 percent) at 4,612.30.
The buoyant start in the US recalled Tuesday’s confident open, which evaporated in the last hour, pushing the S&P 500 down 1.35 percent.
Global markets were mixed Wednesday, with European stocks near flat and Japan’s Nikkei rising 3.20 percent. The Shanghai index fell 1.27 percent as monetary stimulus by the Chinese central bank failed to prompt a turnaround.
US data showed new orders for durable manufactured goods rose solidly in July.
Schlumberger announced a $ 14.8 billion acquisition of oilfield equipment maker Cameron, the latest big transaction as oil prices linger near six and half year lows. Cameron rocketed 44.6 percent higher, while Schlumberger fell 2.4 percent.
The Schlumberger transaction “should ignite some bargain-hunting interest in the energy sector,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare.
O’Hare said Wednesday’s open was impressive, but added, “it’s not how you start, but how you finish.”
