Dow tops 25,000 as stocks rise on global growth outlook

Stocks rallied around the world on signs the global economic expansion that pushed benchmarks to records in 2017 remains intact.

The Dow surpassed 25,000 for the first time, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq reached all-time highs. Trading in S&P 500 stocks was not slowed by the storm lashing the East Coast, with volumes about 20% above the 30-day average. Also Thursday, U.S. Treasuries declined as a report showed U.S. employment strengthening.

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018
A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018. U.S. stocks rose, Treasuries fell and the dollar weakened against most of its G-10 peers in the first official day of trading in 2018. Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg
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The funds with the biggest AUM declines didn’t badly underperform, but investors often found cheaper alternatives.

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U.S. companies added more workers to payrolls than expected in December, data from the ADP Research Institute showed. The economy probably added 190,000 workers in December, the median projection of economists surveyed by Bloomberg ahead of Labor Department data due Friday.

"You saw some very positive numbers coming out of the U.S. payrolls, which continues to show this economic growth story," said Francis Gannon, co-chief investment officer at Royce Funds. “That’s what the market is running on. It’s this idea that the economy is doing better than people think, and then you’ve got the tax reform on top of it, which is kind of adding fuel to the fire."

Core European bonds pared Wednesday’s gains and the euro advanced toward a three-year high as data showed economic activity in the region accelerated to the fastest pace in almost seven years.

Meanwhile, commodities steadied after a record run of gains with oil trading close to its highest in three years. South Africa’s rand led an advance in emerging-market currencies.

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