A gauge of global stocks climbed for a ninth straight session yesterday after a slew of corporate earnings reports in the United States and Europe, while the dollar bounced moderately off of 10-month lows.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit intraday record highs, picking up from strong performances by major European stock indexes.

After decent gains in Asia on the back of positive signs from global economic powerhouse China, MSCI’s world stocks index looked set for a ninth day of gains which would mark its longest winning streak since October 2015. The global index gained 0.33 per cent, setting a record high for a fifth straight session.

“In the US, the earnings season seems to be surprising a little bit on the upside,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank in Cleveland.

“What we have seen recently in the economic reports suggests it should be even better overseas ... So we have come to the point where things looks pretty good in the US and it looks even better in prospect overseas, so what’s not to like about equities.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 25.24 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 21,599.97, the S&P 500  gained 6.44 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 2,467.05 and the Nasdaq Composite added 28.45 points, or 0.45 per cent, to 6,372.76.

Morgan Stanley shares climbed 2.4 pct after the bank’s profit report.

Biotech Vertex soared 22.2 pct after stunning cystic fibrosis drug data.

Not all was rosy in earnings season, as IBM  shares dropped 3.8 pct after its report.

About a week into the heart of second-quarter reporting season, S&P 500 earnings are now expected to rise 8.7 per cent, up from an expectation of an 8-percent rise from the start of July, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

In Europe, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 0.67 per cent. Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML’s  shares gained 6.2 pct after the firm’s quarterly report, boosting the region’s tech sector.

“We would like to see those stronger earnings coming through and Europe really turning a corner,” said Dafydd Davies, partner at Charles Hanover Investments.

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