| US stocks closed higher on Wednesday amid signs of improving trade relations between the US and China, with much of the attention being focussed back on this side of the pond. At the close, the Dow Jones was 0.64% higher at 24,527.27, while the S&P 500 had picked up 0.54% at 2,651.07 and the Nasdaq traded 0.95% firmer at 7,098.31. Sentiment was underpinned by reports that China has agreed to cut tariffs on US cars from 40% to 15% in a move aimed at de-escalating the trade war with the US. The mood was also lifted by news that Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, had been released on bail and comments by Donald Trump, who said in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday that he would intervene in the Justice Department's case against Wanzhou if needed. James Hughes, chief market analyst at AxiTrader, said: "Optimism is coming from two directions, with hopes that a trade deal can be struck between the US and China driving sentiment, whilst anticipation that the Federal Reserve may elect not to hike interest rates next week is also lending support." Much focus was also on UK Prime Minister Theresa May, who said earlier on Wednesday that she would contest a challenge to her leadership scheduled for Wednesday evening "with everything I've got" after rebel Conservative MPs triggered a vote of no confidence in frustration at her inability to deliver a Brexit deal. May won the no-confidence vote by 200 votes to 117. Meanwhile, in Trumpland, the President unveiled a new council aimed at overseeing government efforts on behalf of opportunity zones, with a mind to leverage tax breaks for investors for having helped troubled communities. The White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council will be chaired by former Republican Presidential candidate and Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson and will also include representatives from 13 other agencies. Elsewhere, former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for his role in covering up the President's affair with porn star Stormy Daniels Cohen, who once claimed he would "take a bullet" for Trump, said: "Recently, the president tweeted a statement calling me weak, and he was correct — but for a much different reason." "Time and again I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds rather than listen to my own voice." "Today is the day I am getting my freedom back," he said through tears. On the macro front, falling gas prices helped offset increases in rent and prescription drug prices during November and kept inflation in the US at an arm's length. The consumer price index, or cost of living, was stable last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as expected by economists. The increase in the cost of living over the past 12 months slowed to 2.2% from 2.5%, just shy of its lowest level this year. As of 2110 GMT, West Texas Intermediate was 1.06% lower at $51.10 per barrel, while Brent Crude was down just 0.15% at $60.11. The USD was down 1.19% against the GBP at 0.7912. In corporate news, Mallinckrodt shares closed 0.43% lower after the pharmaceutical company's subsidiary, SpecGx, received a complete letter response from the FDA for its new drug application for Roxicodone, which is a treatment for pain requiring an opioid. Synergy Pharmaceuticals had slid 52.8% at the close as it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced an agreement to sell most of its assets to Bausch Health for $200m. Elsewhere, Neurocrine Biosciences tumbled 13.91% after its trial of a Tourette's syndrome treatment missed its primary goal and Stitch Fix picked up 8.67% after announcing it was shifting focus from new clients to existing ones. | 
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