New York (AFP)

Wall Street ended up on Wednesday, supported by the signing, not surprisingly, of the partial trade agreement between Washington and Beijing, and a salvo of good corporate results.

Its flagship index, the Dow Jones, appreciated by 0.31% to finish at 29,030.22 points, closing for the first time above the symbolic threshold of 29,000 points.

The Nasdaq, with a strong technological coloring, appreciated by 0.08%, to 9,258.70 points.

The S&P 500 Index, which represents the 500 largest companies listed on Wall Street, rose 0.19% to 3,289.20 to finish, like the Dow Jones, at an unprecedented level.

Clues soared as the signing of the White House by US President Donald Trump and Chinese Deputy Prime Minister Liu He of the first phase of a trade deal approached before losing ground late in the session .

The 94-page text is said to bring a truce to the trade war that has plagued the global economy since it was launched by the President in the spring of 2018.

The market reaction to its formalization remained moderate because "the indices have already climbed a lot since mid-October," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing. "The value of companies on the stock market continues to rise but with a few more speed bumps on the road," he said.

China has notably committed to buying $ 200 billion in additional US products over the next two years. The agreement also contains provisions relating to the protection of intellectual property and the conditions of technology transfer, other major requirements of the United States.

The punitive tariffs that currently affect more than $ 370 billion in Chinese products will be maintained until phase 2 of the agreement is signed, Trump said.

Several large companies also announced their results before the opening, the insurer UnitedHealth (+ 2.83%), the asset manager BlackRock (+ 2.30%) and Bank of America (-1.84%). exceeding expectations.

If the title of the financial institution retreats, it is probably because its good results have already been integrated, estimates Gregori Volokhine of Meeschaert Financial Services by stressing that it has already increased by 30% on the stock market over the past year .

Goldman Sachs' figures (-0.18%) were more mixed with a drop in net profit of 26%.

On the bond market, the rate on the 10-year debt of the United States fell around 21:20 GMT to 1.78%, against 1.82% Tuesday at the close.

© 2020 AFP