Following Tuesday’s big rally, U.S. stocks continued their march higher, fueled by signs that both China and Japan will make big moves to stimulate their economies.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged to cut rates and that pushed the Nikkei index up 7.7 percent. Not to be outdone, the Chinese finance ministry said it would cut taxes and fund huge railway projects. The Shanghai Composite added another 2.3 percent.
The Europeans joined the global stock rally with all indices moving higher even though the U.K. released very disappointing trade data. Exports declined 9 percent, the worst drop in nine years, which explains why the U.K. manufacturing numbers dropped 0.4 percent.
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The U.S. added to the stock market party, with the S&P 500 adding 17 points to trade at 1,986, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 156 points to 16,649 and the Nasdaq jumped 48 points to 4,860.
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Tiffany & Co. won its battle with Costco over trademark infringement and trademark counterfeiting. Costco used signs in its jewelry cases describing certain engagement rings as “Tiffany.” Costco claimed that “Tiffany” was a generic term, but the court denied that claim. U.S. District Judge Laura Swain wrote, “Despite Costco’s arguments to the contrary, the court finds that, based on the record evidence, no rational finder of fact could conclude that Costco acted in good faith in adopting the Tiffany mark.” Tiffany stock is up 1 percent to $82.71 in early trading.
Sequential Brands is buying Joe’s Brands for roughly $67 million. Sequential also said it was joining forces with Global Brands on a licensing agreement for Joe’s brands. The first line of Joe’s brands produced in collaboration with Global Brands will be in spring 2016. Sequential is known for such brands as Jessica Simpson and Ellen Tracy. Sequential stock is popping over 4 percent to trade at $17.25.
Macy’s is up by almost 1 percent to $59.70 after it said it would close 35 to 40 underperforming stores. Brick-and-mortar stores are seeing fewer sales as online business increases. Macy’s wanted to prune the weakest stores. Macy’s says it closes a few underperformers each year, so this number is a big increase. Still, the company has 770 stores, so it makes sense to trim back. The closings will begin in early 2016.
Out on the West Coast, Apple is unveiling its next iPhone and possibly relaunching its Apple TV today. Back on the East Coast, Goldman Sachs Global Retailing conference begins and New York Fashion Week gets underway.