Stocks Opened Higher on Trade Deal Hopes

U.S. stocks opened higher on Tuesday, buoyed by investor optimism over re-opening economies and progress toward the U.S.-China trade deal. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 229.24 points, or 0.88%, to 26,254.20. The S&P 500 added 23.71 points, or 0.76%, to 3,141.57. The Nasdaq Composite gained 63.27 points, or 0.63%, to 10,119.75.

Oil prices edged up for a fourth session Tuesday, gathering support from President Donald Trump’s assurance that the China-U.S. trade deal signed in January remains in place. West Texas Intermediate crude for August was up 78 cents, or 1.9%, at $41.50 a barrel. Brent oil for August delivery rose 86 cents, or 2%, at $43.93 a barrel.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro suggested to Fox News in a late-Monday interview that the trade agreement with China, signed in January, had been terminated. Later, Navarro said his comments were “wildly” taken out of context and the phase-one pact remained in force. Trump also tweeted that the agreement was intact.