New York: US stocks ended mixed after the news that the US, Canada and Mexico have reached a new free trade deal to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Monday rose 192.90 points, or 0.73 per cent, to 26,651.21. The S&P 500 increased 10.61 points, or 0.36 per cent, to 2,924.59, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 9.05 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 8,037.30.
Shares of Ford and General Motors both jumped more than 1 per cent following the news. Trade-sensitive stocks Boeing closed 2.79 per cent higher.
Canada and the US reached an agreement, alongside Mexico a new free trade deal, called the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), according to a joint statement from US and Canada on Sunday. The USMCA will replace the 24-year-old NAFTA.
Market sentiment was bolstered as investors expected the new accord would help remove uncertainties, experts noted.
Tesla shares surged more than 17 per cent at market closing after CEO Elon Musk made a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over his recent aborted bid to take the firm private.
Facebook and Intel stocks both declined more than 1 per cent, weighing on the Nasdaq.
On the economic front, the US Institute for Supply Management reported on Monday that the country’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) registered 59.8 in September, a decrease of 1.5 from the August rate. The reading missed market consensus.
[source_without_link]IANS[/source_without_link]