INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
US markets surged on account of a boost for energy stocks on higher oil prices.The SP 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average touched record
highs for a second session running on Friday, helped by a boost for energy stocks from higher oil prices as changes to Wall Street industry
sectors index spurred volatility
Eight of the 11 major SP sectors gained ground with the SP energy sector rising 0.58 per cent led by Chevron and Exxon Mobil as oil markets
awaited a weekend meeting of OPEC
Technology and consumer stocks, however, handed back an early burst of gains after the bell, with traders pointing to fallout from the
biggest reshuffle since 1999 of Wall Street's broad industry sectors as a driving factor.Telecoms major ATT, set to form the heart of a new
powerhouse communications sector that will now include Facebook, Google parent Alphabet and Twitter, rose 1.75 per cent and was the biggest
contributor to the SP."We are seeing investors use the sector realignment as an excuse to take some profits from these high growth
technology stocks," said Chad Oviatt, director of investment management at Huntington Private Bank in Columbus, Ohio.At 11:00 a.m
ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 57.00 points, or 0.21 per cent, at 26,713.98, and the SP 500 3.43 points, or 0.12 per centWith
"quadruple witching" expirations and the SP's quarterly rebalancing of its indexes also playing in, the tech-heavy Nasdaq dipped, with Apple
and Amazon.com down 0.5 per cent and 0.8 per cent respectively.Many of the companies that have powered the tech rally are being reclassified
in the overhaul that takes effect on Monday and may demand a substantial reorganisation of holdings by big institutional investors.Apple
will remain in the tech sector, where it will account for 20 per cent of the index's market capitalization while Amazon will again be
classed as a consumer discretionary firm.In the consumer sector, shares in McDonald's rose 2.0 per cent after the company ended a week
marked by strikes across the country over workplace sexual harassment by raising its quarterly dividend by 15 per cent to $1.16.A 4-per cent
drop in shares in Micron led chipmakers lower after the Idaho-based firm said US tariffs on Chinese goods would weigh on its financial
results for as much as a year.In general, however, trade concerns have moved into the background since Tuesday's latest blows in the
conflict with China, allowing the resumption of a rally that dates back a decade.Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.25-to-1 ratio
Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.36-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.The SP index recorded 51 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while
TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
