Stocks began the session in positive territory and drifted higher throughout the session, pushing the S&P up roughly 1%. The market's gains may have been attributable to hope on the tax reform front after Politico reported about a consensus reached among the "Big 6" of Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Finance Chair Orrin Hatch, and Ways & Means Committee Chair Kevin Brady on ways to pay for cutting both the individual and corporate tax rates. Given the market's weakness last week, the thin summer trading and relative vacuum of other news, even a hint of progress on the tax front was enough to send the Dow up 200 points. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the FHFA home price index edged up 0.1% to 249.3 in June. The Richmond Fed manufacturing index was flat at 14 in August. In Europe, Germany's ZEW results for August were mixed, with the current situation reading better than expected but the expectations reading falling short of the consensus view. COMPANY NEWS: The Wall Street Journal reported that Chevron (CVX) chief executive officer John Watson is planning to step down from the oil giant. The transition is expected to be announced next month, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Michael Wirth, who earlier this year was elevated to the position of vice chairman at Chevron, is currently the leading candidate for the job, the report noted... In addition, Blackstone (BX) shares were up about 1% after the Wall Street Journal reported that the private equity firm is considering an initial public offering of auto parts maker Gates Corp. The business could be worth $8B-$9B, according to the Journal. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the notable gainers was Macy's (M), which rose 4.5% after the company announced the restructuring of its merchandising operations, which it expects to result in a headcount reduction of approximately 100, and reported that it has hired former eBay (EBAY) executive Hal Lawton to be responsible for all aspects of the Macy's brand. Meanwhile, shares of DSW (DSW) jumped 17.5% after the footwear retailer easily eclipsed lowered expectations for both its revenue and earnings. Among the noteworthy losers was Toll Brothers (TOL), which dropped about 2.5% after the home builder reported earnings and gave a full year revenue forecast that was below the consensus view at its midpoint. Also lower following their earnings reports were Medtronic (MDT), which slipped 2%, and Momo (MOMO), which declined 20%. INDEXES: The Dow advanced 196.14, or 0.9%, to 21,899.89, the Nasdaq gained 84.35, or 1.36%, to 6,297.48, and the S&P 500 rose 24.14, or 0.99%, to 2,452.51.
