US stocks hit record highs at start of new year

Markets kicked off the new year with more record highs.

In the US, the S&P 500 rose 0.8 percent to close at a record high while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.5 percent to close above 7,000 for the first time ever.

However, elsewhere, markets were mixed. The Hang Seng soared 1.8 percent but the STOXX Europe 600 fell 0.2 percent.

Brian Battle, director of trading at Performance Trust Capital Partners in Chicago, said that “all valuations are really high” and “it’s hard to imagine that we could replicate” gains like last year.

Still, Battle thinks that “it’s reasonable to believe we could have another up market this year”.