US stocks perk up after post-election selloff
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Washington - Major US stock indices rose Friday after President Barack Obama and John Boehner, US speaker of the House, set the stage for negotiations to solve the looming fiscal cliff.
The gains halted the two-day decline that followed Tuesday's elections, amid scepticism about the ability of Congress and Obama to resolve the looming combination of tax increases and spending cuts that will occur at year's end without a deficit-reduction deal.
The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average added 4.07 points, or 0.03 per cent, to 12,815.39. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 2.34 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 1,379.85. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index rose 9.29 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,904.87.
The US currency rose against the euro to 78.7 euro cents from 78.47 euro cents on Thursday. The dollar declined against the Japanese currency to 79.49 yen from 79.5 yen.//DPA
