Strong Macy's, Alibaba lift US stocks

[NEW YORK] US department store chain Macy's and Chinese e-commerce behemoth Alibaba surged in opening trade Thursday, lifting Wall Street stocks.

Macy's rose 15.3 per cent after announcing plans to shut 100 of its 728 stores and bolster investment in online shopping as it reported a sharp drop in second-quarter profits.

Alibaba gained 5.4 per cent after reporting a 59 per cent increase in revenue to 32.15 billion yuan (S$6.5 billion) in the first quarter. The results showed the benefits of expanding outside the company's core e-commerce business, in sectors ranging from sports to entertainment.

Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 18,571.20, up 0.4 per cent.

The broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.4 per cent to 2,183.30, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.5 per cent to 5,228.15.

AFP