Energy firms’ gains push US market indexes to record highs

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index slipped less than one point, or 0.1 percent, to 2,185. “Economic numbers such as jobless claims didn’t do anything to challenge the strength”.

Crude oil jumped as much as 5 per cent on comments from the Saudi oil minister about potential action to stabilise prices and an International Energy Agency forecast that crude oil markets would rebalance in the next few months.

West Texas Intermediate was flat at $43.49 a barrel and Brent crude was 0.2% lower at $45.97.

Gus Faucher, deputy chief economist at PNC Financial Services, said the US economy’s relative success compared with other developed countries has attracted investors.

The S&P 500 index showed 19 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 55 new highs and 24 new lows. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite index added 1.6 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.8 percent after China reported retail sales and factory output increased sharply in July from a year earlier, even as they declined from June 2016’s levels. Kohl’s rallied the most ever, while peers J.C. Penney Co. and Nordstrom climbed at least 7.5 per cent. The VIX closed down 1.1% at 11.55 on a scale where readings below 15-20 indicate stable conditions on Wall Street.

Kohl’s shares rose 17% after its quarterly profit beat estimates.

The S&P energy index.SPNY jumped 1.68 percent, making it the top gainer among the 10 major sectors of the benchmark, led by gains in Exxon (XOM.N) and Chevron (CVX.N).

In addition, experts attribute the positive equity outlook to now-rising energy prices – oil prices had collapsed earlier in the year but have slowly come back. Total volume traded was 25 percent above the 100-day average.

PUMPED UP: Planet Fitness gained 10.4 percent after the fitness center company raised its profit and revenue projections following a strong second-quarter report.

The S&P 500 (.SPX) was down 3.06 points, or 0.14 percent, at 2,182.73.

“I’m a bit surprised to see us hitting record highs again”, said Randy Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives for Charles Schwab in Austin.

Foreign-exchange traders are becoming convinced that monetary stimulus programs around the world have reached their limits in efforts to spark economic growth, according to

MARKETS OVERSEAS: The DAX index in Germany was down 0.3 percent and France’s CAC 40 was down 0.1 percent.