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| - Wall Street stocks finished higher Wednesday following solid economic data as investors monitored congressional economic stimulus talks and digested the first presidential debate. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.2 percent to 27,781.70. The broad-based S&P 500 climbed 0.8 percent to 3,363.00, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.7 percent to 11,167.51. Data showed US private sector hiring jumped by an unexpectedly big 749,000 jobs in September. Pending home sales also topped expectations. On the negative side, Disney announced layoffs in its US division and thousands of airline workers were at risk of furlough as soon as Thursday with the expiration of a deadline from an earlier US aid bill. Stocks jumped early in the day following optimistic comments from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin about ongoing stimulus negotiations. Those gains ebbed somewhat later in the session after reports that Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not seal a deal. But the two sides agreed to keep talking. Snap polls on the debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden leaned towards Biden following their contentious encounter. Biden also leads in national polls. Among individual companies, Disney dropped 1.0 percent after it announced it will cut 28,000 jobs from its US theme parks division, singling out California restrictions that have prevented the giant Disneyland resort from reopening due to the coronavirus crisis. Boeing jumped 1.0 percent following a test flight of the long-grounded 737 MAX piloted by Federal Aviation Administrator Steve Dickson, who said he was pleased with the performance of the jet. Dickson said there were still more steps needed before the MAX will be recertified, but the comments suggested the plane is nearing a return to service. jmb/cs
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