US close: Indices hit new highs on China trade deal hopes
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Monday 27 Oct 2025
(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks finished at new highs on Monday on hopes that the US and China are making progress on trade talks, laying the groundwork for a potential deal between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping later this week.
The Dow finished 0.7% higher at a new peak of 47,544.59, the S&P 500 gained 1.2% to 6,875.16, while the Nasdaq surged 1.9% to 23,637.46 - with all three indices surpassing their previous closing record highs set last Friday.
No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Monday, though the week is set to be a busy one for earnings, with more than a third of S&P 500 constituents set to publish quarterly figures. That includes a number of "Magnificent 7" stocks, including Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms and Microsoft.
Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said that traders are treating these blue chip tech stocks' earnings "like oracles".
"The consensus view: expectations are too low, capex deceleration too shallow, and the bar too easy to clear. In a market starved for validation, any sign of continued AI spend will feed the narrative that this is a secular boom, not a bubble," he said.
Economic data continues to be thin on the ground as the government shutdown rolls on, though the Dallas Federal Reserve's latest Manufacturing Outlook Survey was released. The report showed that Texas factory activity expanded modestly in October, with the production index unchanged at 5.2, indicating below-average growth for a second consecutive month.
Trade tensions ease
Speaking from the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a "successful framework" was in place for the leaders to discuss on Thursday, with the framework reportedly including a delay to China's rare earth export restrictions - a reversal of Trump's threatened 100% tariffs due to begin on 1 November - and a resumption of Chinese soybean purchases. A resolution to the TikTok dispute may also be part of the agreement, reports suggested.
Trump said from Air Force One: "I have a lot of respect for President Xi, and we are going to come away with the deal."
News from the White House that the administration has settled on trade deals with Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam also lifted sentiment.
However, not all was optimistic on the trade front after Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on Canadian imports over the weekend, citing a failure to withdraw a television ad featuring former president Ronald Reagan criticising tariffs.
Market movers
Both American Water Works and Essential Utilities finished lower following the news that they are to merge in an all-stock deal with a combined market value of nearly $40bn. The combined company, which will serve 4.7m water and wastewater connections across 17 US states, will boast an enterprise value of around $63bn, the firms said.
Essential shareholders are set to receive 0.305 American Water shares for each Essential share they own - equivalent to a premium of around 10% based on the average stock price over the past 60 trading days.
Tech stocks were largely in demand, with Qualcomm in the lead with an 11% gain after unveiling AI accelerator chips to compete with AMD and Nvidia.
Meanwhile, US-listed shares of Chinese companies Baidu and JD.com were also flying higher on hopes of a trade deal.
Gold miners Newmont, Coeur Mining and Hecla Mining all dropped sharply as gold prices continued their descent from recent record highs.
Dow Jones - Risers
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $25.73 3.71%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $40.19 3.29%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $262.82 2.28%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $313.09 1.83%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $531.52 1.51%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $310.00 1.38%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $304.15 1.23%
American Express Co. (AXP) $361.67 1.15%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $71.39 1.08%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.23 1.06%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $104.47 -1.60%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $68.59 -0.75%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $151.74 -0.49%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $385.27 -0.36%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $291.16 -0.21%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $155.28 -0.18%
3M Co. (MMM) $168.40 -0.06%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $190.30 -0.05%
S&P 500 - Risers
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $9.36 15.70%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $187.68 11.09%
Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW) $80.82 6.20%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $62.57 4.11%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $144.16 3.94%
Celanese Corp. (CE) $43.84 3.86%
Target Corp. (TGT) $97.77 3.72%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $269.93 3.62%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $259.92 3.60%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $102.70 3.57%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $96.23 -8.91%
Newmont Corporation (NEM) $78.63 -5.69%
Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG) $26.98 -4.36%
Ford Motor Co. (F) $13.26 -4.19%
Bath & Body Works, Inc. (BBWI) $26.04 -3.56%
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) $153.21 -2.80%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $33.15 -2.70%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $13.41 -2.69%
Huntington Bancshares Inc. (HBAN) $15.64 -2.68%
F5 Inc. (FFIV) $300.24 -2.66%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $187.68 11.09%
Mercadolibre Inc. (MELI) $2,161.11 5.61%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $128.66 4.81%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $452.42 4.31%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $269.93 3.62%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $259.92 3.60%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $102.70 3.57%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $151.68 3.44%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $40.19 3.29%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $34.20 3.04%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $10.58 -8.51%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $52.67 -3.32%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $13.41 -2.69%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $129.43 -2.13%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $236.59 -1.62%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $238.86 -1.58%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $95.79 -1.52%
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $26.84 -1.40%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $10.92 -1.35%
Cintas Corp. (CTAS) $188.68 -1.13%
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