Nasdaq hits record as Wall Street opens higher

NEW YORK (AFP) - Wall Street opened higher on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq hitting a new record, but then retreated from those levels, as investors awaited speeches from Federal Reserve policymakers.

US stocks rebound from losses Monday, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 will be looking for their first positive close in five sessions.

About 10 minutes into the day's trading, the blue-chip Dow and broader S&P 500 were each up 0.3% to 20,964.63 and 2,380.97, respectively, while the Nasdaq had gained 0.4%, rising to 5,925.19.

But the indexes shortly after retreated from those high points and the Dow turned slightly negative.

Tech stocks were leading the Dow, with Apple and Microsoft each up 0.8% and Verizon adding 0.6%.

Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com said the buoyant mood on Wall Street was in part likely a sigh of relief from the French political scene, following Monday's debate performance by presidential contender Emmanuel Macron easing worries about the potential for a victory by far-right candidate Marine Le Pen and a resurgence of protectionism in Europe.

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"The effective driver this morning, we believe, is the weaker dollar," which reflected a relaxation of the risk aversion prevalent before the French presidential debate, O'Hare wrote.

"News reports have pointed to polls that suggest centrist candidate Macron was thought to have won the debate, tempering concerns for the time being about Marine Le Pen, leader of the far right Front National Party, winning the debate and boosting her chances of winning the presidential election."

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The dollar was softening in early trading, with the Dollar Index, which measures the US dollar's value against a basket of major currencies, down 0.6%, lows not recorded since early February.

Meanwhile, absent much economic data to react to, markets are awaiting speeches by the presidents of the Kansas City and Cleveland Federal Reserve Banks, among the first since the Fed last week raised the benchmark lending rate for the first time this year.

The Commerce Department reported the US current account deficit fell 3.1% in the fourth quarter of 2016, surprising most analysts, but was 3.9% higher for the year.