US Stocks Gain Despite Rising China Tensions

Wall Street stocks finished a choppy session higher on Wednesday as investors weighed progress towards a coronavirus vaccine against worries over worsening US-China relations.

The Dow Jones finished up 0.6 percent at 27,005.

The S&P 500 also climbed 0.6 percent to 3,276, while the Nasdaq advanced 0.2 percent to 10,706.

US-China tensions, already rising because of the coronavirus pandemic and Beijing's crackdown in Hong Kong, ratcheted up another notch as the United States ordered the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston within 72 hours.

Meanwhile, German firm BioNTech and Pfizer announced that the US government had agreed to pay almost US$2 billion for 100 million doses of a potential coronavirus vaccine if regulatory approval is granted.

Pfizer led the Dow, gaining 5.1 percent.

The progress towards a vaccine has offset worries about spiking US coronavirus cases, though analysts caution it could take more time than the market expects to widely distribute a vaccine.

The National Association of Realtors reported sales of existing US homes jumped a record 20.7 percent in June, ending three months of coronavirus-driven declines as buyers returned to the market.

Among individual companies, Best Buy surged 7.8 percent after it said that its second-quarter sales were on track to increase 2.5 percent compared with the year-ago period, and that it was raising starting pay for workers to US$15 an hour.

Nike gained 0.6 percent as it said it expects to cut jobs during a revamp of its organisation, aiming to accelerate direct-to-consumer initiatives amid the coronavirus pandemic.

United Airlines fell 4.2 percent after reporting a US$1.6 billion loss in the second quarter.

Executives offered a cautious outlook on flying demand, saying they do not expect a full recovery until a Covid-19 vaccine is developed and widely available. (AFP)