Dow hits 26,000 mark for first time on earnings reports

Wall Street’s main indexes rose sharply on Tuesday. The Dow hit the 26,000 mark for the first time, as the fourth-quarter earnings season kicked into high gear, Reuters reported. Hopes of strong quarterly earnings, supported by a steep cut in corporate taxes, and solid global economic growth have bolstered optimism at the start of 2018. At 9:41am ET (14:41 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 225.34 points, or 0.87 percent, at 26,028.53, helping it record its fastest 1,000-point rise. It ended above 25,000 on January 4. The S&P 500 was up 18.09 points, or 0.65 percent, at 2,804.33, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 62.08 points, or 0.85 percent, at 7,323.14.