New York (Reuters) - Wall Street’s main indexes closed higher after a choppy session on Thursday as investors grew more optimistic on trade after reports that the United States is considering a delay in imposing tariffs on Mexican imports.
The market added to gains after a Bloomberg report cited unidentified sources saying that U.S. President Donald Trump could delay the tariffs he had threatened to put on Mexican goods as soon as Monday.
The Washington Post reported that under a possible immigration deal, Mexico would deploy 6,000 troops to the Guatemalan border.
But strategists urged caution until a final U.S.-Mexico deal is reached and followed by a U.S.-China trade deal.
“You have to take all of this with a huge grain of salt,” said Sameer Samana, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute in St. Louis, adding that even if the Mexico report is true, “it would be a short-term positive.”
“It’s not giving that long-term clarity businesses and investors and consumers need to make decisions,” he said.
Earlier in the day Trump said he would decide on more tariffs “probably right after the G20” meeting later this month, which followed his warning overnight that he would levy duties on at least another $300 billion worth of Chinese goods.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 181.09 points, or 0.71%, to 25,720.66, the S&P 500 gained 17.34 points, or 0.61%, to 2,843.49 and the Nasdaq Composite added 40.08 points, or 0.53%, to 7,615.55.
It was the first time since mid-May that the three major indexes gained ground for three sessions in a row.
