US equity markets closed higher for a fourth session, with the S&P500 logging an intra-day record high as traders monitor the impending trade talks between China and the US in Washington - Dow up +64-points or +0.25%, with Intel and Goldman Sachs (+%) the leading index constituents. The Dow Transports sub index hit its first intraday record high since 16 January. The broader S&P500 rose +0.21% after touching a fresh record all-time high (2,873.23) earlier in the session. The index settled just 0.3% shy of the record close of 2,872.87 notched on 26 January. The bull market turns 3,453 days old on Wednesday (22 August), which would make it the longest on record by most definitions. Overnight, it tied the one that ran from October 1990 to March 2000. The S&P 500 has risen more than 300 percent since hitting its financial crisis bottom on March 9, 2009. For the year, the index is up more than 7 percent. The NASDAQ rose +0.49% to settle within 1% of a record all time high. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 Index rose +1.14% to a record closing high (1,718.05) after earlier setting an intraday record high (1,722.29). On Monday (20 August) President Trump commented in an interview with Reuters he does not expect much progress from trade talks with China this week in Washington and that he had "no time frame" for ending the dispute. The US administration is also moving forward with tariffs that cover US$200B in Chinese goods, including some that are to take effect on Thursday (23 August).
