Business Highlights: US-China trade truce sends US stocks solidly higher; crude up, gas down

The S&P 500 index climbed 30.20 points, or 1.1 percent, to 2,790.37. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 287.97 points, or 1.1 percent, to 25,826.43. The Nasdaq composite rose 110.98 points, or 1.5 percent, to 7,441.51. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks picked up 15.69 points, or 1 percent, to 1,548.96.

Benchmark U.S. crude gained 4 percent to settle at $52.95 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 3.8 percent to close at $61.69 per barrel in London. Wholesale gasoline gained 2.1 percent to $1.43 a gallon. Heating oil climbed 3.2 percent to $1.89 a gallon. Natural gas lost 5.9 percent to $4.34 per 1,000 cubic feet.

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NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed solidly higher on Wall Street after the U.S. and China agreed to a 90-day truce in their trade dispute. Technology stocks, automakers, retailers and industrial companies powered the broad rally. Oil prices closed higher amid expectations OPEC will cut production. U.S. trading will be closed Wednesday in observance of national day of mourning for former President George H.W. Bush, who died Friday. Traders observed a moment of silence in his honor before markets opened Monday.

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China gets US tariff delay but movement on tech unclear

BEIJING (AP) — China won a delay from President Donald Trump on U.S. tariff hikes but gave no sign its stance changed in a battle over its technology ambitions. Economists say Beijing might have hinted at possible concessions on plans for state-led development. But others warn President Xi Jinping’s government sees those plans as too important to abandon, raising the possibility of renewed conflict.

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US construction spending down 0.1% in October

WASHINGTON (AP) — Spending on U.S. construction projects fell 0.1% in October, the third consecutive monthly decline, as weakness in home building and non-residential construction offset a rebound in government projects. The Commerce Department says the October decline matched a similar 0.1% drop in September and followed a 0.4% fall in August.

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Trump and Xi agreement buys time in trade war

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping of China agreed to allow some breathing room in the trade war with an agreement to keep talking. A permanent peace will likely prove much harder. At the Group of 20 summit Saturday in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the cease-fire Trump and Xi agreed to Saturday night illustrated that the leaders of the world’s two largest economies can manage to find common ground, however tentative and uncertain it may be.

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Qatar to pull out of Saudi-dominated OPEC amid Doha boycott

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The tiny, energy-rich Arab nation of Qatar announced Monday it will withdraw from OPEC in January, a rebuke of the Saudi-dominated cartel as the kingdom’s boycott of Doha continues unabated and a crucial meeting of the group looms this week. The surprise declaration could make Qatar the first Middle East nation to leave the cartel since its founding in 1960. It again injects politics into an organization that long has insisted it is nonpartisan, stealing headlines just as the cartel deliberates production cuts to halt a slide in global crude oil prices.

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Where are the drones? Amazon’s customers are still waiting

Jeff Bezos boldly predicted five years ago that drones would be carrying Amazon packages to people’s doorsteps by now. Amazon customers are still waiting. And it’s unclear when, if ever, this particular order by the company’s founder and CEO will arrive. Bezos made billions of dollars by transforming the retail sector. But overcoming the regulatory hurdles and safety issues posed by drones appears to be a challenge even for the world’s wealthiest man.

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Alaska putting together pieces after massive earthquake

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The supply chain of food and other goods delivered to the Port of Anchorage from the Lower 48 has not been disrupted by the powerful earthquake that caused widespread damage to roads in the Anchorage area. The port is the entry point for about 90 percent of all goods sold in Alaska and is important to keeping the supply chain intact. The magnitude 7.0 earthquake rattled the state’s largest city early Friday morning swaying buildings and fraying nerves.

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UN chief: Climate change is “most important issue we face”

KATOWICE, Poland (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres opened the U.N. climate summit in Poland by issuing a dramatic appeal to world leaders to take seriously the threat of global warming and act boldly to avert a catastrophic rise in temperatures before the end of the century. Guterres has named climate change as “the most important issue we face.”

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NYSE, Nasdaq to close on Wednesday to honor Bush

NEW YORK (AP) — Major U.S. stock markets will close Wednesday in honor of former President George H.W. Bush, who died Friday at 94. The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq said they will close trading Wednesday in observance of a national day of mourning for Bush.

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