The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 25 points, notching a record close, with Wal-Mart, Goldman Sachs and Apple contributing the most gains.
USA stocks gained on Thursday, with the Dow Jones closing at a record for the 24th time in 2017, led by financials ahead of a roster of corporate results from the US's biggest banks. Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained 12 points, or 0.2%, to 5,798. Target climbed 2.28 percent after it raised its second-quarter forecasts and said sales and customer traffic grew. Big retail chains and other consumer-focused stocks were also among the gainers.
Wells Fargo & Co. rose 0.78%, Citigroup Inc. added 0.15% and Dow component JP Morgan Chase & Co. rose 0.64%.
Wall Street posted slight gains on Thursday and the Dow hit another record high close, with financials rising ahead of profit reports due Friday from several big US banks.
THE QUOTE: "A coordinated jump for global equity markets following the considerably dovish tone from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's Congressional testimony sets Asian markets for gains today", Jingyi Pan of IG said in a commentary.
Jimmy Carter returns to Winnipeg charity project after hospital stay
The Carter Center announced his return to the Lyle Street Habitat build on Twitter. A smiling Carter showed up in blue jeans and a work shirt to the site in the St.
Snap Inc. surged 3% after Stifel Nicolaus upgraded the Snapchat parent to buy, saying that a recent selloff in the stock had created a "compelling" opportunity. The market expects earnings per share growth of about 7 percent from companies in the S&P 500.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks picked up 1.34 points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,425.66.
Benchmark U.S. crude gained 59 cents, or 1.3 percent, to settle at $46.08 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The Nasdaq composite rose 13 points, or 0.2 percent, to 6,274.
The ICE Dollar Index was flat at 95.770. PayPal gained $1.35, or 2.4 percent, to $57.90. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index edged up 0.01% to hold near two-year highs.
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