Wall Street closes higher; Dow Jones 216 ahead
Trump's tax package set for Wednesday
Global Investors hail Emmanuel Macron result in France
US shares closed well up - posting the biggest gains for more than seven weeks.
Wall Street joined other global markets to welcome Emmanuel Macron's results in the first round of voting.
The Dow Jones closed up 216 at 20,763, the S&P 500 added over 25 at 2,374 and the Nasdaq gained 73 at 5,983.
In Toronto, the TSA added almost 98 points to see Canada's largest index close at 15,712.
Shares in oil services titan Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) gained 1.7%4 to $67.53 as it reported a 6% improvement in quarterly revenue thanks to what was described as a rapid increase in activity in North America.
MID-SESSION
Wall Street shares were climbing up the ladder at mid-session.
The results of France's first round of elections seems to have sparked a global response where equities are back in the frame.
The success of Emmanuel Macron has led markets to believe the risk of Frexit - France now leaving the EU, has lessened.
The Dow Jones has fired up 220 points at 20,763, while the S&P500 is up 24 at 2,373.
The tech heavy Nasdaq exchange is up over 69 points at 5,980.
Among the notable risers on the broader S&P500 was toys and games giant Hasbro Inc (NASDAQ:HAS), which cheered the market with reports of buoyant trading in the first quarter.
Shares rose 6.47% to $102.24 on the day.
Underlying earnings per share rose to 54 cents, including an 11 cent boost from a change in accounting procedure, from 38 cents the previous year.
Analysts had expected earnings to be more or less unchanged year-on-year
OPEN
As expected, US stocks were racing away out at the open with the Dow Jones 218 points ahead.
Investors around the globe have welcomed the news that Emmanuel Macron - the Centrist pro EU politician - could be the next President of France if he wins against Marine Le Pen..
He is of course an absolute newcomer to the political scene however.
The Dow Jones is 1.07% ahead at 20,767. The S&P500 is over 24 ahead at 2,373 and the tech heavy Nasdaq is 69 ahead at 5,980.
In Canada, the main TSX index is over 85 points higher, at 15,699.
Elsewhere, this week could be key for the future of the Trump trade and the rise in equities recently as the US administration is expected to deliver plans for tax cuts on Wednesday.
Kathleen Brooks, analyst at City Index, said: "Last week when the US stock indices looked like they might roll over and fall sharply lower, Trump announced his “big” tax plan, which helped the markets to stage a (modest) recovery.
"This seems like a tricky strategy to maintain. If Trump doesn’t deliver on his market promises then investors will start to doubt him, which is bad news for asset prices and risk sentiment.
"But, if the Fed has been replaced as protector of financial asset prices, then don’t expect central bank support when the going gets tough in future…"
READ - Ocean Power Technologies shares wave higher
In equities today, a notable riser was tech firm Ocean Power Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: OPTT), which waved over 48% higher as its power and communication product was leased to Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding (MES) and shipped to Japan.
On S&P the runaway gainer was C.R Bard (NYSE:BCR) which surged over 20% to $305.30 It came after another medical device giant Becton, Dickinson that it had reached a deal to acquire the firm for $24 billion. The acquisition ranks as the fourth largest of the year globally and the largest in the US according to Dealogic.
PREVIEW
A new week and US stocks look set to soar after ending on a dull note on Friday.
Dow Jones futures are trading a whopping 206 points higher, while the broader based S&P500 furtures are 27 points ahead. The tech heavy Nasdaq exchange is seen opening almost 57 points higher.
It comes as sentiment has been bolstered by President Trump's comments over the weekend that there would be huge tax changes announced this week - on Wednesday.
Investors are also apparently cheering the results of the latest round of voting in the French election yesterday, which saw centrist candidate and pro EU Emmanuel Macron garner the highest number of votes. He will now fight Marine Le Pen for the Presidency.
So Le Pen is in the runoff and all establishment candidates vanquished. Before Trump this would not have been conceivable.
— Bill Mitchell (@mitchellvii) 24 April 2017
In Asia, stocks rose overnight on Monday with Japan's Nikkei 225 index ending the session up 1.4%.
In London, at the time of writing, FTSE 100 is up 125 points at 7,240.
On Friday, the Nasdaq Composite index had ascended to a record close on Thursday but pulled back 6 points to close out at 5,911.
Meanwhile, the Dow slid 31 at 20,547. The S&P 500 fell 7 points to 2,348.
Big banks are still basking after results season with Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) and Bank of America Corp (NYSE: BAC) up 2.34% and 2.2% respectively in pre-market.
US crude is up 0.67% but still below the US$50 a barrel level - at US$49.95 as the market is still dominated by the issue of output cuts.
In companies today, investors will be eyeing results from oil services giant Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL), which is posting quarterlies before the bell.
Aluminium and metals titan Alcoa Corp (NYSE:AA) reports after the bell.