Wall Street hit fresh highs on Thursday over raised hopes that an interim trade deal between Beijing and Washington was still on course to be signed in January.“The deal is done,” said Donald Trump on Christmas Eve. “It’s just being translated right now.” The day after the president's remarks, it was reported that a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, had said the two sides were in close touch about a signing ceremony.

The anticipation of a ceasefire to the protracted trade war helped the three major US stock indices reach new records. 

The Nasdaq climbed 0.8 per cent to 9,022 points, pushing the index beyond the 9,000 milestone for the first time, with the technology-heavy benchmark having its 11th consecutive day of positive returns. This is its best run since a 12-day stretch in July 2009. The performance was boosted by a 4.5 per cent jump in Amazon shares, after it reported a bumper holiday sales season, albeit without details.