Tag Archives: Economy

Venezuela Congress begins measuring inflation amid cenbank silence

People queue to deposit their 100 bolivar notes, near Venezuela's Central Bank in Caracas, Venezuela December 16, 2016. REUTERS/Marco Bello

By Corina Pons and Brian Ellsworth

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela’s opposition-led congress has started publishing the country’s inflation rate based on its own data collection, as the government of President Nicolas Maduro remains silent about the crisis-stricken nation’s soaring consumer prices.

The legislature has enlisted economics students to collect price data in five cities and asked former central bank employees to process it using the central bank’s methodology, said legislator Jose Guerra, an economist and former researcher at the bank.

Their measurements show prices rose 741 percent in the 12 months to February, 20.1 percent last month alone and 42.5 percent in the first two months of 2017.

Venezuela’s most recent official inflation figures, released last year, showed prices rising 180.9 percent in 2015.

“We’re not trying to substitute the central bank. We are filling the vacuum left by the central bank as a result of it not publishing the figures,” Guerra said in an interview.

The central bank did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Venezuela’s economy has been in free fall since the 2014 collapse of oil prices, which left the socialist economic system unable to maintain an elaborate system of subsidies and price controls that functioned during the oil boom years.

Maduro says his government is the victim of an “economic war” led by political adversaries with the help of Washington.

The government has kept quiet about fundamental economic indicators including economic growth and balance of payments amid an increasingly dire panorama of swelling supermarket lines and worsening shortages.

The absence of inflation figures has everyone from workers to business owners unable to make basic economic calculations.

“Workers don’t know what their salary is, companies don’t know what their costs are,” Guerra said. “There’s no way to calculate the real interest rate. There’s no way to calculate the real exchange rate.”

He said the project already has drawn the interest of Wall Street banks, which are closely monitoring the country’s economy on concerns it could default on its high-yielding dollar bonds.

Measuring inflation is unusually complicated in Venezuela, because consumer products as well as hard currency fetch vastly different prices depending on whether or not they are distributed to the socialist economy’s subsidy system.

Consumers can sometimes obtain basic goods at low-cost prices by waiting for hours in supermarket lines but increasingly have to buy such goods from smugglers on informal markets for more than 10 times the officially mandated prices.

(Writing by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Alexandra Ulmer and Bill Trott)

U.S. job growth rises briskly, wages continue to climb

People wait in line to enter the Nassau County Mega Job Fair at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, U.S. October 7, 2014. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. job growth increased more than expected in February and wages rose steadily, which could give the Federal Reserve the green light to raise interest rates next week despite slowing economic growth.

Nonfarm payrolls rose by 235,000 jobs last month as the construction sector recorded its largest gain in nearly 10 years due to unseasonably warm weather, the Labor Department said on Friday. The economy created 9,000 more jobs in December and January than previously reported.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen signaled last week that the U.S. central bank would likely hike rates at its March 14-15 policy meeting. Job gains averaged 209,000 per month over the past three months.

The economy needs to create roughly 100,000 jobs per month to keep up with growth in the working-age population.

Last month’s brisk clip of hiring was accompanied by steady wage growth, with average hourly earnings rising 6 cents, or 0.2 percent.

January’s wage growth was revised up to 0.2 percent from the previous 0.1 percent gain.

That lifted the year-on-year increase in wages to 2.8 percent from 2.6 percent in January.

The unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.7 percent, even as more people entered the labor market, encouraged by the hiring spree. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast employment increasing by 190,000 jobs last month.

With the labor market near full employment, wage growth could speed up as companies are forced to raise compensation to retain employees and attract skilled workers.

According to economists, wage growth of between 3 percent and 3.5 percent is needed to lift inflation to the Fed’s 2 percent target. But inflation is already firming, in part as commodity prices rise.

Rising inflation, together with a tighter labor market, stock market boom and strengthening global economy, has left some economists expecting that the Fed could increase rates much faster than is currently anticipated by financial markets.

The U.S. central bank lifted its benchmark overnight rate in December and has forecast three rate increases for 2017.

Job growth has averaged more than 186,000 per month since January 2010, a recovery that predates Donald Trump’s presidency. While Trump’s victory last November sparked a stock market rally and jumps in consumer and business confidence, there has been no surge in either business or consumer spending.

Data ranging from trade to consumer and business spending suggest the economy slowed further early in the first quarter after growing at a 1.9 percent annualized rate in the final three months of 2016. The Atlanta Fed is forecasting gross

domestic product growing at a 1.2 percent rate this quarter.

All sectors of the economy, with the exception of retail and utilities, expanded payrolls in February. Manufacturing employment increased 28,000, the largest increase since August 2013, as rising oil prices fan demand for machinery.

Construction payrolls surged 58,000, the biggest gain since March 2007, boosted by warmer weather.

Retail sector employment fell 26,000 after a gain of 39,900 jobs in January. Retailers including J.C. Penney Co Inc <JCP.N> and Macy’s Inc <M.N> have announced thousands of layoffs as they shift toward online sales and scale back on brick-and-mortar operations.

Government payrolls increased by 8,000 jobs last month despite a freeze on the hiring of civilian federal government workers, which came into effect in January.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)

U.S. import prices moderate on cheap fuel

A woman pumps gas at a station in Falls Church, Virginia December 16, 2014. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) – U.S. import price increases slowed in February on cheap fuel, but there were signs of a pickup in underlying imported inflation.

The Labor Department said on Thursday import prices rose 0.2 percent last month after an upwardly revised 0.6 percent increase in January. It was the third straight monthly increase.

In the 12 months through February, import prices accelerated 4.6 percent, the largest gain since February 2012, after rising 3.8 percent in January.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast import prices ticking up 0.1 percent last month after a previously reported 0.4 percent increase in January.

Last month’s moderation in import prices is likely to be temporary amid strengthening global demand that is lifting prices for oil and other commodities.

Prices for imported fuels fell 0.7 percent last month after surging 7.2 percent in January. Import prices excluding fuels rose 0.3 percent. That was the first increase since July and followed a 0.1 percent dip the prior month.

The cost of imported food jumped 1.0 percent last month. Prices for imported capital goods were unchanged after slipping 0.1 percent in January. Imported consumer goods prices excluding automobiles increased 0.2 percent last month after a similar gain in January.

The report also showed export prices increased 0.3 percent in February after gaining 0.2 percent in January. Export prices were up 3.1 percent from a year ago. That was the biggest increase since December 2011 and followed a 2.4 percent rise in January.

Prices for agricultural exports increased 1.4 percent last month, boosted by rising vegetable prices, as well as higher prices for soybeans and corn. Agricultural export prices rose 0.1 percent in January.

(Reporting By Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

U.S. weekly jobless claims rise; layoffs fall in February

Hundreds of job seekers wait in line with their resumes to talk to recruiters at the Colorado Hospital Association health care career fair in Denver April 9, 2013. REUTERS/Rick Wilking

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits last week rebounded from a near 44-year low, but the labor market continues to tighten amid a sharp drop in job cuts in February.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 243,000 for the week ended March 4, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Claims for the prior week were unrevised at 223,000, the lowest level since March 1973.

It was the 105th straight week that claims remained below 300,000, a threshold associated with a healthy labor market.

That is the longest stretch since 1970, when the labor market was much smaller.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new claims for unemployment benefits rising to 235,000 in the latest week. The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, rose 2,250 to 236,500 last week.

In a separate report, global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said U.S.-based employers announced 36,957 job cuts in February, down 19 percent from January. The retail sector continued to dominate layoffs last month as it shifts toward online and scales back on brick-and-mortar operations.

JC Penney <JCP.N> topped the list, announcing 5,500 job cuts as a result of 140 store closures.

U.S. Treasuries were little changed on the data. The dollar fell to a session low against a basket of currencies as the European Central Bank pledged to keep its aggressive stimulus policy at least until the end of the year.

NEAR FULL EMPLOYMENT

The labor market is at or close to full employment, with employers increasingly reporting difficulties finding qualified workers for open job positions. Labor market tightness together with firming inflation could allow the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates as early as next week.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen signaled last week that the U.S. central bank would likely raise rates at its March 14-15 policy meeting. The Fed raised its benchmark overnight rate in December and has forecast three rate increases for 2017.

The labor market strength comes despite the economy showing signs of fatigue early in the first quarter. Data on trade, consumer, business and construction spending were soft in January, leaving the Atlanta Fed forecasting GDP increasing at a 1.2 percent rate in the first quarter.

The economy grew at a 1.9 percent annualized rate in the fourth quarter, slowing from the third quarter’s brisk 3.5 percent pace.

The claims report has no bearing on February’s employment report, which is scheduled for release on Friday, as it falls outside the survey period. First-time applications for jobless benefits declined in February, suggesting another month of strong employment growth.

According to a Reuters survey of economists, nonfarm payrolls probably increased by 190,000 jobs last month after surging 227,000 in January. The unemployment rate is forecast falling one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.7 percent.

But payrolls could surprise on the upside after a report on Wednesday showed private sector employers hired 298,000 workers in February, the largest amount in a year.

In another report on Thursday, the Labor Department said import prices rose 0.2 percent last month after advancing 0.6 percent in January. It was the third straight monthly increase.

In the 12 months through February, import prices accelerated 4.6 percent, the largest gain since February 2012, after rising 3.8 percent in January.

Import prices excluding fuels rose 0.3 percent, the first increase since July, after slipping 0.1 percent in January.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Greek farmers clash with police in Athens during reforms protest

Riot police stand guard during clashes with Greek farmers from the island of Crete outside the Agriculture Ministry in Athens, Greece March 8, 2017. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis

By Lefteris Papadimas

ATHENS (Reuters) – Greek farmers clashed with police in central Athens on Wednesday when a protest against tax and pension reforms mandated by the country’s multi-billion-euro bailout turned violent.

Waving shepherds crooks, about 1,300 farmers who had arrived in Athens from the island of Crete overnight headed to the agriculture ministry, which was sealed off by police buses.

Tempers flared after reports spread among the assembled crowd that officials had refused to see a delegation from the farmers, witnesses said.

A number of farmers charged the building and smashed windows of two parked police buses, with police responding by using tear gas, dispersing crowds into sidestreets.

At one point some police were cornered by men who pounded their riot shields repeatedly with sticks.

Riot police remained at the scene, with some demonstrators occasionally appearing to hurl stones at them. One demonstrator punched a hole in a police bus window, placing a large blue-and-white Greek flag in it.

Shops in the area, a commercial district in downtown Athens, were shuttered.

Farmers have been engaged in a long-running feud with Greek authorities over social security laws introduced in mid-2016 which force them to pay on imputed earnings upfront, and higher pension contributions.

While most Greeks bore the impact of the adjustment, it hit farmers particularly hard since many previously did not make pension contributions.

“The state is taking 75 percent of my income … we all need meds to endure this,” said Manolis Bobodakis, 42.

Greece is now engaged in discussions with creditors on additional economic reforms required to meet bailout obligations.

The crisis-hit country signed up to a new credit lifeline worth 86 billion euros in mid-2015, its third since 2010.

Farmers have also been hit by high production costs triggered by the removal of tax breaks on items such as fuel and fertilizer, coupled with low prices.

“It’s killing us,” said Panagiotis Koutsomikos, 47, a beekeeper.

(Writing By Michele Kambas; Editing by Toby Chopra)

Carnival party over, Brazil returns to reality of political crisis

A reveller from Mangueira samba school performs during the second night of the carnival parade at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil February 28, 2017. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares

By Anthony Boadle and Lisandra Paraguassu

BRASILIA (Reuters) – Carnival revelers were still dancing in the streets of Brazilian cities on Wednesday but for President Michel Temer’s government it was back to the reality of mounting corruption allegations that threaten its survival.

“Out with Temer” was a frequent chant against the unpopular president during the annual celebrations across a country hit by record unemployment and fed up with its political leaders.

On Wednesday afternoon the jailed former CEO of Brazil’s biggest engineering group, Marcelo Odebrecht, was questioned by a judge investigating donations made to Temer’s 2014 campaign, when he was the running mate for leftist leader Dilma Rousseff, who was impeached last year.

A source with access to Odebrecht’s deposition said he confirmed an illegal payment to Rousseff’s campaign manager Joao Santana, but added that he could not say if the then-president or her running mate knew about it.

Odebrecht said former finance minister Guido Mantega negotiated under-the-table donations for the 2014 campaign that totaled 300 million reais, but he denied they were bribes to obtain government contracts, the source said.

Odebrecht, who is seeking leniency to lower a 19-year sentence for corruption and money-laundering, said Temer did not directly request a donation at a dinner in 2014, though the matter was discussed in a general way.

The massive investigation into bribery and political kickbacks, dubbed Operation Car Wash, threatens to bring down members of Temer’s inner circle and has generated political uncertainty that is undermining business confidence and prolonging Brazil’s two-year recession.

Electoral court judge Herman Benjamin is seeking to determine if a 10 million reais ($3.2 million) contribution allegedly sought by Temer was paid from graft money, as claimed by another Odebrecht executive in plea bargain testimony.

Temer has said the donation was legal and duly registered, but Benjamin could recommend annulling the Rousseff-Temer ticket, which would lead to the president’s removal and election of a new leader by Congress if it is upheld by the full court.

The graft scandal endangers Temer’s efforts to push unpopular austerity reforms through Congress aimed at curbing a growing budget deficit that cost Brazil its investment grade credit rating in 2015.

“The President’s biggest challenge now is to prevent the Car Wash investigation paralyzing his reform agenda in Congress,” a Temer aide told Reuters, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the government’s worries.

The crisis will deepen in the next few weeks when Brazil’s top prosecutor Rodrigo Janot will ask the Supreme Court to make public plea bargain statements of 77 Odebrecht executives who are expected to name up to one-third of Brazil’s federal lawmakers for taking kickbacks.

Among the politicians at risk is Temer’s chief of staff, Eliseu Padilha, who is on medical leave after prostate surgery but will have to face questions about a package of 1 million reais he allegedly requested as part an undeclared contribution from Odebrecht.

A lawyer and longtime friend of Temer’s, José Yunes, has approached prosecutors to confirm the package was handed over at his office for Padilha but that he had no idea that it contained cash, leaving the chief of staff in a difficult position.

(Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Andrew Hay)

U.S. jobless claims near 44-year-low as labor market tightens

Legal firm Hogan Lovells representative Nina LeClair (2nd R) talks to U.S. military veteran applicants (L) at a hiring fair for veteran job seekers and military spouses at the Verizon Center in Washington April 9, 2014. REUTERS/Gary Cameron

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to near a 44-year-low last week, pointing to further tightening of the labor market even as economic growth appears to have remained moderate in the first quarter.

The stronger labor market combined with rising inflation could push the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates this month.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 223,000 for the week ended Feb. 25, the lowest level since March 1973, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Data for the prior week was revised to show 2,000 fewer applications received than previously reported.

It was the 104th straight week that claims remained below 300,000, a threshold associated with a healthy labor market. That is the longest stretch since 1970, when the labor market was much smaller. It is now at or close to full employment, with an unemployment rate of 4.8 percent.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new claims for unemployment benefits dipping to 243,000 in the latest week. Financial markets are already pricing in a rate hike at the Fed’s March 14-15 policy meeting.

U.S. stock index futures rose after the data on Thursday. The U.S. dollar <.DXY> also firmed against a basket of currencies, while prices for U.S. government debt fell.

A survey from the U.S. central bank on Wednesday showed the labor market remained tight in early 2017, with some of the Fed’s districts reporting “widening” labor shortages.

The government reported on Wednesday that the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index jumped 1.9 percent in the 12 months through January, the biggest gain since October 2012. The PCE price index increased 1.6 percent in December.

The core PCE, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, increased 1.7 percent, still below its 2 percent target.

TEPID GROWTH

A Labor Department analyst said there were no special factors influencing last week’s claims data. Only claims for Oklahoma were estimated.

The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, fell 6,250 to 234,250 last week, the lowest reading since April 1973.

Data this week showed tepid growth in consumer spending in January, weak equipment and construction spending, and a wider goods trade deficit, suggesting the economy struggled to gain momentum early in the first quarter after slowing in the final three months of 2016.

The Atlanta Fed is forecasting first-quarter gross domestic product rising at a 1.8 percent annualized rate. The economy grew at a 1.9 percent pace in the fourth quarter.

Thursday’s claims report also showed the number of people still receiving benefits after an initial week of aid increased 3,000 to 2.07 million in the week ended Feb. 18. The four-week average of the so-called continuing claims edged up 750 to 2.07 million.

The continuing claims data covered the survey week for February’s unemployment rate. The four-week moving average of claims fell 21,500 between the January and February survey periods, suggesting an improvement in the jobless rate.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)

Dow tops 21,000 on Trump speech, rate hike talk

A screen shows the Dow Jones Industrial Average soon after the market opened on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange . REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

By Yashaswini Swamynathan

(Reuters) – The Dow crossed the 21,000 mark for the first time ever on Wednesday, as President Donald Trump’s measured tone in his first speech to Congress lifted investor optimism and bank stocks surged on hopes of an interest rate hike this month.

Trump on Tuesday said he wanted to boost the U.S. economy with a “massive” tax relief and make a $1 trillion effort on infrastructure, bets that have helped Wall Street scale new records since the November election.

“Trump came off very Presidential and investors are drawing optimism from the way he delivered the message in his speech,” said Andre Bakhos, managing director at Janlyn Capital in Bernardsville, New Jersey.

“Today is just another vote of confidence in Donald Trump being able to do what he says he wants to do.”

If the Dow closes above 21,000, it would have taken 24 trading sessions since the blue-chip index first closed above 20,000, matching the fastest move between thousand-point milestones, which happened between March and May 1999 and took the index above 11,000.

Banks and industrial stocks, which have benefited the most in the post-election rally, were the biggest gainers on Wednesday. The spike also helped the S&P to break out from the tight trading range the index has been stuck in since Dec. 7.

The three main indexes were on track for their best one-day gain since Nov. 7, a day before the U.S. presidential election.

The S&P financial index <.SPSY> soared 2.7 percent, outperforming the other 10 major sectors, also helped by key Federal Reserve officials who hinted at an interest rate hike this month.

The KBW Nasdaq Bank index <.BKX> was up 3.3 percent, while the dollar gained 0.6 percent.

The odds of March rate hike also rose after the Commerce Department reported that January inflation ticked up by the most in four years.

Traders have now priced in a nearly 70 percent chance of rate hike when the Fed’s policy-setting body meets on March 14-15, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Gold prices, the CBOE Volatility index <.VIX> and bond proxy sectors of the S&P 500 dropped.

“The specter of higher rates means the economy is doing better,” Bakhos said.

At 12:18 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average <.DJI> was up 290.2 points, or 1.39 percent, at 21,102.44, the S&P 500 <.SPX> was up 33.11 points, or 1.40 percent, at 2,396.75 and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> was up 76.88 points, or 1.32 percent, at 5,902.31.

Seven of the 11 major S&P sectors, including industrials <.SPLRCI> and materials <.SPLRCM>, gained between 1.4 and 2.7 percent.

Lowe’s <LOW.N> stock jumped 9.3 percent to $81.22 and was the biggest percentage gainer on the S&P, after the home improvement chain issued an upbeat sales forecast.

One laggard on all the three indexes was Intel <INTC.O>, which fell 1.2 percent after Bernstein downgraded the stock to “underperform” and cut its price target.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 2,044 to 891. On the Nasdaq, 2,192 issues rose and 620 fell.

The S&P 500 index showed 127 new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 189 new highs and 32 new lows.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

U.S. consumer spending slows; inflation pushes higher

A shoppers carries bags with purchases through Quincy Market in downtown in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer spending rose less than expected in January as the largest monthly increase in inflation in four years eroded households’ purchasing power, pointing to moderate economic growth in the first quarter.

The surge in inflation raises the possibility of an interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve this month. While still below the U.S. central bank’s 2 percent target, inflation is now in the upper end of the range that Fed officials in December felt would be reached this year.

The Commerce Department said on Wednesday that consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, increased 0.2 percent after rising 0.5 percent in December. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast consumer spending gaining 0.3 percent in January.

Consumer spending is likely to remain supported amid promises by the Trump administration of sweeping tax cuts and increased infrastructure spending.

In a speech to Congress on Tuesday night, President Donald Trump said his economic team was working on a “historic tax reform that will reduce the tax rate on our companies” and promised a “massive” tax relief for the middle class. Trump offered no further details.

Consumer confidence has surged following Trump’s election victory, hitting a 15-1/2-year high in February.

In January the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 0.4 percent – the largest gain since February 2013 – after rising 0.2 percent in December.

In the 12 months through January, the PCE price index jumped 1.9 percent. That was the biggest year-on-year gain since October 2012 and followed a 1.6 percent increase in December.

Excluding food and energy, the so-called core PCE price index rose 0.3 percent in January. That was the biggest increase since January 2012 and followed a 0.1 percent gain in December.

The core PCE price index increased 1.7 percent year-on-year after a similar gain in December. The core PCE is the Fed’s preferred inflation measure.

Prices for U.S. Treasuries fell, with the yield on the interest-rate sensitive 2-year note <US2YT=RR> rising to its highest level since August 2009. Fed funds futures were pricing in a 65 percent chance of an interest rate hike at the Fed’s March 14-15 policy meeting.

The U.S. central bank has forecast three rate increases this year. The Fed hiked its overnight interest rate last December by 25 basis points to a range of 0.50 percent to 0.75 percent.

The dollar rose against a basket of currencies, while U.S. stock index futures pared gains slightly.

REAL SPENDING FALLS

Rising price pressures, however, suggest that consumer spending will probably not provide a big boost to gross domestic product in the first quarter. When adjusted for inflation, consumer spending fell 0.3 percent in January, the first drop since August and the biggest in three years. Real consumer spending increased 0.3 percent in December.

Consumer spending increased at a 3.0 percent annualized rate in the fourth quarter, helping to blunt some of the impact on the economy from a wider trade deficit. The economy grew at a 1.9 percent rate in the fourth quarter.

Consumer spending in January was held back by a 0.3 percent drop in purchases of long-lasting manufactured goods such as automobiles. Spending on services was unchanged.

Personal income rose 0.4 percent in January after gaining 0.3 percent in December. Wages and salaries rose 0.4 percent.

Income at the disposal of households after accounting for inflation and taxes, fell 0.2 percent, the first decline since October 2013. Savings increased to $795.7 billion in January from $779.5 billion in December

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Dow breaches 21,000 as banks gain on rate talk

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., February 28, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks opened at record intraday highs on Wednesday, with the Dow breaching the 21,000 mark for the first time ever as a more measured tone in President Donald Trump’s speech reassured investors and bank stocks gained on higher chances of an interest rate hike this month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average &lt;.DJI&gt; was up 184.17 points, or 0.88 percent, at 20,996.41, the S&amp;P 500 &lt;.SPX&gt; was up 18.65 points, or 0.789037 percent, at 2,382.29 and the Nasdaq composite &lt;.IXIC&gt; was up 49.66 points, or 0.85 percent, at 5,875.10.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)