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BUSINESS Saturday 21 OctOber 2017
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U.S. stocks end higher; S&P 500, Dow on 6-week winning streak

agement from the Sen- helped lift U.S. stocks in re-
ate’s passage of a bud- cent weeks. Under the ad-
get bill that is expected to ministration’s tax plan, the
ease the path for the White first major overhaul of the
House’s tax cut proposal. tax code in three decades,
“Market expectations for corporations would see
an impactful tax reform their top tax rate cut from
have been running fairly 35 percent to 20 percent.
low,” said Mike Baele, man- On Thursday, the Senate
aging director at U.S. Bank narrowly passed a $4 trillion
Private Wealth Manage- budget resolution that now
ment. “That changed a goes to the House of Rep-
bit today with the Senate resentatives. The bill sets
passing the budget resolu- the stage for tax legislation
tion for 2018.” later this year that could
The S&P 500 index rose pass through the Senate
13.11 points, or 0.5 per- without the threat of a fili-
cent, to 2,575.21. The Dow buster by Democrats. It also
gained 165.59 points, or 0.7 adds $1.5 trillion to the defi-
percent, to 23,328.63. The cit over the next 10 years.
Nasdaq composite added Should tax reform pass,
23.99 points, or 0.4 percent, it’s also a good bet that
to 6,629.05. The Russell 2000 interest rates will move
Gregory Rowe, center, squeezes between fellow traders Ryan Falvey, left, and Kevin Lodewick on index of smaller-compa- higher, which will benefit
the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Technology companies and ny stocks picked up 7.20 banks and other financial
banks are leading U.S. stocks slightly lower in early trading on Wall Street. points, or 0.5 percent, to companies. That’s one
(AP Photo/Richard Drew) 1,509.25. reason banks and bond
By ALEX VEIGA & Poor’s 500 index to its fifth Banks led the gainers Fri- The S&P 500 and the Dow yields rose Friday. Higher
AP Business Writer record close in a row. The day. Technology compa- are now on a six-week win- bond yields allow banks to
Wall Street capped a week Dow Jones industrial aver- nies also posted big gains, ning streak. charge higher interest rates
with no shortage of mile- age, which crossed past helping to drive the Nas- President Donald Trump’s on mortgages and other
stones with a few more Fri- the 23,000 mark for the first daq composite to a record plans to slash corporate loans. The yield on the 10-
day. time on Wednesday, also high. taxes and make other busi- year Treasury note rose to
U.S. stocks closed modestly finished the day with its The latest milestones came ness-friendly changes to 2.38 percent from 2.32 per-
higher, lifting the Standard fifth-straight all-time high. as investors drew encour- the nation’s tax laws have cent late Thursday.q

At GE, a new urgency to return to industrial roots

“It’s also clear from our cur- mention Immelt by name the addition to the board
rent results that we need to but said he was focusing on of a representative from
make some major changes fixing GE’s “culture,” which activist investor Trian Fund
with urgency and a depth he said “needs to be driven Management.
of purpose,” Flannery said by mutual candor and in- “Things will not stay the
in a conference call Friday. tense execution, and the same at GE,” Flannery
The shares slid 6 percent in accountability that must vowed.
morning trading before re- come with that.” He men- General Electric Co. has
covering by midday. Flan- tioned the overhaul of the been paring businesses for
nery led GE’s health care top executive ranks and well over a decade now. q
unit until becoming CEO in
August, replacing Jeff Im-
melt, who had reshaped
GE after taking over from
legendary CEO Jack
In this Monday, June 12, 2017, photo, the General Electric logo Welch but couldn’t reverse
appears above a trading post on the floor of the New York a slump in the company’s
Stock Exchange. The ambition of new GE CEO John Flannery to stock while the overall mar-
pare away everything that could stand in the way of General ket boomed. GE shares are
Electric’s return to its industrial core emerged Friday, Oct. 20,
2017, with plans to expel more than $20 billion in operations down 25 percent this year,
over the next couple of years. the worst performer in the
(AP Photo/Richard Drew) Dow Jones industrial aver-
NEW YORK (AP) — New CEO report shows how much fur- age. Immelt also came un-
John Flannery’s ambition to ther there is to go before it der fire for executive perks.
pare away everything that reaches that goal. GE acknowledged that on
could stand in the way of The company drastically occasions an empty plane
General Electric’s return to cut expectations for the followed the CEO’s jet on
its industrial core became full year after third-quarter trips, and one of Flannery’s
clearer Friday with plans to profit fell more sharply than first moves was grounding
shed more than $20 billion expected on large restruc- GE’s fleet of six corporate
in operations over the next turing charges. Flannery jets. Flannery has replaced
couple of years. called the results unac- several top executives.
GE’s third-quarter earnings ceptable. On Friday, Flannery did not