NEW YORK, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks closed higher on Tuesday after the United States and Mexico struck a trade deal the previous day, which might pave the way for replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 14.38 points, or 0.06 percent, to 26,064.02. The S&P 500 rose 0.78 points, or 0.03 percent, to 2,897.52. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 12.14 points, or 0.15 percent, to 8,030.04.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday the new deal would be called the United States-Mexico Trade Agreement and the bilateral deal would be very special for farmers and manufacturers.
Although negotiations between the United States and Canada have not started, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told media Tuesday that he is hopeful a deal with Canada will get done.
On the economic front, U.S. Home price gains decelerated in June, indicating higher mortgage rates and housing affordability challenges are taking their tolls.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. Census divisions, reported a 6.2 percent annual gain in June, down from 6.4 percent in the previous month.
"Even as home prices keep climbing, we are seeing signs that growth is easing in the housing market," said David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the index committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices in a release.
"Sales of both new and existing homes are roughly flat over the last six months amidst news stories of an increase in the number of homes for sale in some markets," said Blitzer.
Meanwhile, consumer confidence rose in August to its highest level since October 2000, building on July's solid result.
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index increased to 133.4 in August, up from 127.9 in July.
"Expectations, which had declined in June and July, bounced back in August and continue to suggest solid economic growth for the remainder of 2018," said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at The Conference Board. Enditem
