Trade War Ceasefire Sends S&P 500 To Record High

At the closing bell, the broad-based S&P 500 was at 2,964, up 0.8 per cent. That is about 10 points above the prior record but about 13 points below its peak earlier in the session.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5 per cent to 26,719, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1.1 percent to 8,091.

Major US indices had opened the session more than one per cent higher in the wake of the weekend announcement on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit but pulled back as the session progressed.

The gains reflected relief that President Xi Jinping and US counterpart Donald Trump had managed to avert further deterioration in trade relations even as myriad questions remain on what will be done to address existing tariffs and resolve differences on technology-related trade.

"Obviously it's great to hear that the imminent scare is gone but the uncertainty is still very much there," said Nate Thooft, senior portfolio manager of Manulife Asset Management. (AFP)