US equity markets advanced, with both the S&P500 and Nasdaq logging fresh record closing highs for a second straight session as sentiment was buoyed by a combination of corporate earnings optimism, stimulus talks and progress on COVID-19 vaccine rollouts - Dow added +92-points or +0.30% to 31,148.24, just shy of its 20 January closing record of 31,188.38. Nike Inc (up +3.19%) and Cisco Systems Co (+1.76%) were among the leading index performers. The broader S&P500 rose +0.39% to 3,886.83, logging its seventh record closing high year-to-date. Materials (up +1.71%), Communication Services (+0.95%), Energy (+0.92%) and Consumer Discretionary (+0.92%) rose 0.9%+ to lead ten of the eleven primary sectors higher. Information Technology (down -0.22%) was the only sector to close in the red after hitting a record high earlier in the session. Both the Dow and S&P 500 rose for a fifth straight session in their longest streak of gains since August. The Nasdaq gained +0.57% to 13,856.30, the eight record closing high for the technology-centric index year-to-date. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rose +1.4%.
