Dow exceeds 27,000 as Trump decision on rebate strengthens health care

Traders work on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, USA on July 1, 2019. REUTERS / Brendan McDermid

July 11, 2019

By Medha Singh

(Reuters) – Dow's industrials surged 27,000 points for the first time, and the S & P 500 hit near record highs on Thursday, thanks to technology and health stocks and low-yielding bets. interest rates following dovish remarks by Fed chief Jerome Powell.

Health insurer shares, including Cigna Corp and UnitedHealth Group Inc jumped 13.74% and 4.74%, while drug distributors such as McKesson Corp increased by 3.85% after the Trump administration withdrew a rule to eliminate drug discounts from its Medicare health plans.

The health index <.SPXHC>, which is the worst performing S & P sector this year, rose 0.29%.

Powell, who began his second day of testimony before Congress, said the central bank was ready to "do the right thing" to support record economic growth in the United States.

"Will the chief of money avoid a very weak growth or recession or is it an insurance policy?" Said economist Peter Cardillo. Chief Executive Officer at Spartan Capital Securities in New York. "If this last point, the market can continue its rally. Otherwise, we will have a problem of income. "

At 9:54 (ET), the Dow Jones Industrial Average <.DJI> was up 135.16 points, or 0.50%, to 26,995.36. The S & P 500 <.SPX> was up 6.97 points, or 0.23%, to 3,000.04, and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> was up 12.56 points, or 0.15%, to 8,215.09.

Technology <.SPLRCT> Equities rose 0.30%, which boosted the three leading indices.

Delta Air Lines Inc increased by 1% after recording a 39.3% increase in quarterly earnings, with the carrier benefiting from higher fares and more complete flights. This comes a day after the American Airlines Group Inc. increased its estimate of second quarter unit revenues. The airline index S & P 1500 <.SPCOMALI> increased by 0.37%.

A Ministry of Labor report says US underlying consumer prices have risen to almost a year and a half in June, but it is unlikely to change the Fed's expectations for a reduction rates this month.

Emerging issues outnumbered by a 1.33 to 1 ratio on the NYSE. Falling numbers outnumbered defenders for a ratio of 1.01: 1 on the Nasdaq.

The S & P index posted 24 new highs over 52 weeks and three new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 45 new highs and 12 new lows.

(Report by Medha Singh and Manas Mishra in Bengaluru, edited by Sriraj Kalluvila)