Stocks climb as markets cap turbulent quarter with calm end

U.S. stocks climbed on Monday and gave one last nudge to ensure the S&P 500 emerged from yet another tumultuous quarter with a modest gain.

As has been the case throughout the quarter, movements in President Donald Trump’s trade war with China helped drive the market on Monday. Investors found encouragement after China said that its top trade negotiator will lead talks with the United States that are expected to take place next week. The Trump administration also calmed some worries that it may limit U.S. investment in Chinese companies.

The developments helped push technology stocks higher in particular. Those companies often move along with news about trade because of how reliant they are on China as both a customer and a supplier. The S&P 500 climbed 14.95 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,976.74.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 96.58, or 0.4 percent, to 26,916.83, and the Nasdaq composite added 59.71, or 0.8 percent, to 7,999.34.

The moves left the S&P 500 with a 1.2 percent gain for the quarter. While that was its smallest quarterly gain this year, the index had been on track for a much worse performance just a month ago.

Trump shocked markets in August when he said he’d raise tariffs on Chinese goods, and the announcement sent stocks and bond yields reeling. The S&P 500 dropped more than 6 percent in the weeks following July 26, when it set its last record. But stocks began climbing again in September as both sides made conciliatory moves to ease tensions.

Yields, meanwhile, remained lower for the quarter after the Federal Reserve cut shortterm rates twice. They were the first rate cuts for the Fed since the financial crisis was swamping the economy in 2008. Across the Atlantic, the European Central Bank was likewise working to keep rates low in hopes of shoring up a slowing global economy.

The yield on the 10year Treasury dipped to 1.65 percent from 1.67 percent late Friday. At the end of the last quarter, it was at 2 percent.

Like the S&P 500, the Dow also ended the quarter with a gain of 1.2 percent. The technologyheavy Nasdaq was a touch lower, with a loss of 0.1 percent.

Small companies took on more damage, as they typically do when investors are worried about the threat of a recession. The Russell 2000 lost 2.8 percent during the quarter.