U.S. stocks jump to record highs amid strong earnings

NEW YORK, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks surged to close at record highs on Friday, as Wall Street bet on a strong corporate earnings season.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 228.46 points, or 0.89 percent, to 25,803.19. The S&P 500 rose 18.68 points, or 0.67 percent, to 2,786.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 49.28 points, or 0.68 percent, to 7,261.06.

Shares of JP Morgan Chase ticked up Friday, after the financial giant posted better-than-expected earnings.

The bank announced fourth-quarter 2017 net income of 4.2 billion U.S. dollars, or 1.07 dollars per share.

BlackRock and Wells Fargo also reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

Wells Fargo posted fourth quarter net income of 6.2 billion dollars, or 1.16 dollars per diluted share.

The latest data from Thomson Reuters showed that the S&P 500 companies' blended earnings in the fourth quarter of 2017 are expected to rise 12.1 percent year on year, while the revenues are forecast to increase 7.0 percent.

On the economic front, the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers increased 0.1 percent in December on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Labor Department reported Friday.

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.3 percent in December, its largest increase since January 2017. Enditem