US equities pushed into fresh record territory on Thursday morning as investors absorbed the joint statement from the Beijing summit, which committed the United States and China to "constructive strategic stability" and explicitly endorsed keeping the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping. The S&P 500 was up 0.75 per cent at 7,499.88 by mid-morning in New York, the Dow rose 0.79 per cent to 50,086, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.84 per cent.
Wednesday's session, which closed at a new record of 7,444.25 on the S&P, had already priced in a constructive-sounding outcome. The follow-through on Thursday came in spite of a hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation print earlier this week, with traders pointing to easing supply-chain risk as the dominant factor.
Within the index, semiconductors led the gains: Nvidia rose 2.2 per cent after Jensen Huang accompanied Air Force One to Beijing on its refuelling stop and was photographed shaking hands with senior Chinese officials. Apple was up 1.6 per cent on reports that its Gemini-powered Siri overhaul will be unveiled at WWDC next month. Energy was the lone weak spot, with the sector down 0.6 per cent as Brent eased toward $107.
Treasury yields were modestly higher on the safe-haven unwind, with the 10-year at 4.62 per cent. The dollar index slipped 0.3 per cent, with the yuan firming after Beijing signalled it would tolerate a stronger reference rate.
Strategists at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs cautioned that the summit framework, while constructive, does not resolve the trade-tariff overhang and noted that the S&P's forward P/E now sits near the top of its decade range. "Better than expected is priced; better than priced is the question for next week," wrote Goldman's David Kostin in a note.