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In US markets, the Dow closed up almost 163 points or +0.61%, the S&P500 gained +0.62% while the NASDAQ rose +1.05%. Stocks rose on Wednesday after President Donald Trump said a U.S.-China trade deal could arrive sooner than expected. Investors also pored through a rough transcript of Trump’s call with the Ukrainian president from earlier this year. Tech was the best-performing sector in the S&P 500, rallying more than 1% along with consumer services. Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Alphabet all closed higher.

US equity markets retreated as politics sadly dominated investor sentiment - Dow down -142-points or -0.53%, paring an earlier decline of over >200-points. The broader S&P500 -0.84%, logging its largest single session decline since 23 August. The technology-centric NASDAQ lost -1.46% to book its worst loss of the month to date. Netflix Inc dropped a further -4.26% to extend the streaming company's decline over the past five sessions to -15.63% amid concerns around increasing competition. Amazon.com fell -2.45% and below its 200-day moving average. Broadcom Inc fell ~2.7% in the extended session after the chip maker announced a US$3B convertible-stock offering. Broadcom said it plans to use the proceeds to repay debt. In August, Broadcom offered US$10.7B to buy Symantec Corp.'s (-1.64%) enterprise security business. Starbucks Corporation fell -0.98% despite a European Union court ruling that a tax deal between the Dutch government and the coffee company did not amount to illegal state support Levi Strauss & Co rose ~1.4% in extended trading after the apparel maker's board of directors approved a +7% dividend increase to US$0.15c per share. After the markets' close, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi confirmed earlier speculation in announcing an impeachment inquiry into President Trump following reports that Trump pressed Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son. However, President Trump said that he has authorised the release of the “complete, fully declassified and unredacted” transcript of a phone call with the Ukrainian President.

US equity markets faded into the close of Monday's session to leave the benchmark indices little changed - Dow inched +14-points or +0.06% higher, with American Express up +1.2% after the company announced a buyback programme of up to 120M shares and lifted its dividend by 10% to US$0.43c per share. The broader S&P500 dipped -0.01%, with Consumer Staples (up +0.36%) and Real Estate (+0.23%) the leading sector performers. The NASDAQ slipped -0.06%. Amazon.com Inc retreated 0.5% after Morgan Stanley cut their price target on the firm by 4% to US$2,200.

US equity markets retreated as trade concerns continue to unsettle investors - Dow down -160-points or -0.59% The broader S&P500 -0.49%, NASDAQ -0.80%, with Apple Inc down -1.46% as the new iPhone 11 went on sale for the first time in stores. Netflix Inc fell for a third straight session (down -5.83%), with Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Reed Hastings warning investors at a conference last Friday (20 September) that “While we’ve been competing with many people in the last decade, it’s a whole new world starting in November . . . It’ll be tough competition.” Roku Inc tumbled -19.22% after a research analyst at Pivotal Research distributed a note pondering if the streaming-device maker was “broken.” Last Friday's (20 September) trading session marked "quadruple witching", the simultaneous expiry of stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and stock futures, which also stoked some volatility. For the week, the Dow lost -1.05%, S&P500 -0.51% and Nasdaq -0.72%.

US equity markets relinquished much of their earlier session gains into the close of trading albeit the benchmark indices still sit within striking distance of their record highs - Dow down -52-points or -0.19%, with gains in Microsoft Corp (up +1.84%) and UnitedHealth Group Inc (+0.97%) weren’t enough to offset losses in Boeing Co (down -0.51%), Home Depot Inc (-1.17%) and Walt Disney Co (-2.56%). The broader S&P500 settled flat, with gains for the Health Care (up +0.47%) and Utilities (+0.36%) sectors offset by falls for the Industrials (down -0.50%) and Financials (-0.4%) sectors. The NASDAQ inched +0.07% higher. Tonight's AEST trading session marks "quadruple witching", the simultaneous expiry of stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and stock futures, which can stoke some volatility (particularly late in the session).

US equity markets recovered from declines earlier in the session to settle with modest gains as investors digested the latest monetary policy decision and pronouncements from the Federal Reserve - Dow settled +36-points or +0.13% higher, recovering from an earlier decline of as much -212-points or -0.80%. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co (up +1%) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc (+0.5%) combined to add ~16 points to the Dow. The broader S&P500 eked out a +0.03% gain, NASDAQ -0.11%. Microsoft declared an 11% quarterly dividend increase (to US$0.51c, up from US$0.46c)after the closing bell , the latest in a series of regular hikes.

US equity markets settled with modest gains as investors digested the latest headlines around the Saudi Arabia's oil production and await the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate decision - Dow up +34-points or +0.13% The broader S&P500 +0.26%, NASDAQ +0.40%. Value stocks have outperformed their growth counterparts this month, rising 6.7% through last night's AEST close. Growth stocks, meanwhile, are down -0.4%.
Deputy-level U.S-China trade talks are scheduled to start in Washington on Thursday, the U.S. Trade Representative’s office said, paving the way for high-level talks in October.

US equity markets retreated as the weekend attacks on Saudi Arabia's key oil facilities unsettled investors on the eve of the Federal Reserve's latest two day monetary policy meeting - Dow down -143-points or -0.52%, snapping an eight session winning streak. The broader S&P500 slipped -0.31% despite a +3.29% gain for the Energy sector. General Motors fell -4.3% after United Auto Workers union went on strike. The NASDAQ dipped -0.28%. Investors also eyed some soft China economic data released yesterday (16 September).

US equity markets were mixed last Friday but the benchmark indices logged their third consecutive week of gains - Dow up +37-points or +0.14%, marking the index's eighth straight advance. Trade bellwethers Caterpillar Inc and Boeing Co rose +1.5% and +1.1%, respectively. The broader S&P500 dipped -0.07%, with Materials (up+1.14%), Financials (0.84%) and Energy (+0.8%) the best performing sectors. Major banks Bank of America Corporation (up +1.69%), Citigroup Inc (+1.57%) and J.P.Morgan Chase and Co (+1.97%) all rose more than >1.5%. The NASDAQ eased -0.22%. Apple Inc fell -1.94%, with Goldman Sachs cutting their target price on the stock to US$165 from US$187 (but retaining their 'neutral' rating on the company) on concerns that Apple TV+ may act as a drag on earnings. The fall saw Apple's market capitalisation fall back below

US markets settled with modest gains as investors digested a host of US-China trade headlines - Dow up +45-points or +0.17% and extending its winning streak into a seventh straight session. The index closed to within 0.6% of of its all time high (27,398.68) set on 16 July. The broader S&P500 added +0.29%, with Materials (up +0.72%) leading nine of the eleven primary sectors higher. The technology-centric NASDAQ rose +0.30%. Bloomberg News reported that the White House was contemplating a limited trade deal with China. In return for promises on agricultural purchases and intellectual-property issues, the U.S. would delay and take away some tariffs on Chinese imports. However, a senior White House official later denied the report to CNBC, saying that the Trump administration was "absolutely not" considering an interim trade deal with China. Separately, The Wall Street Journal reported that Beijing was looking to split trade negotiations into two tracks, separating the more thornier national security issues from less contentious trade concerns, in the hopes of advancing stalled trade talks with the US.