Tech rally leads US stocks higher

Wall Street stocks gained ground Tuesday following two straight losing sessions, after the US said it would delay imposing a ban on dealings with Huawei, which gave a boost to technology shares.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index led major indices lower Monday on worries about the Huawei ban, and then led the advance on Tuesday, closing at 7,785.72, a gain of 1.1 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.8 percent to finish at 25,877.33, while the broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.9 percent to 2,864.37.

Stocks fell sharply on Monday after Google began to sever ties with Huawei. But the US Commerce Department announced late Monday it would delay implementation of the ban for 90 days to allow companies to adjust their operations and avoid sudden disruption.

Nate Thooft, senior portfolio manager of Manulife Asset Management, Huawei seems to be a “bargaining chip” in the broader US-China trade talks, raising concerns China could respond by targeting US tech companies.

Many analysts expect more volatility in markets ahead.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen on trade,” Thooft said.

“Our baseline remains the view that basically there is going to be a trade deal. But the timeline is very questionable on when it’s going to happen.”

Google-parent Alphabet rose 1.0 percent, while Apple gained 1.9 percent, after falling hard on Monday.

Department store chain Kohl’s slumped 12.4 percent as it slashed its profit forecast after first-quarter sales lagged expectations.

Other retailers were mixed after earnings reports, with Home Depot adding 0.2 percent and TJ Maxx parent TJX gaining 0.5 percent and JC Penney slumping 7.4 percent.

Dow member Merck rose 0.8 percent as it announced it would acquire Peloton Therapeutics, which is developing cancer drugs, for $1.05 billion.