thank you so much, tony shiret. >>> bucking the retail slump is bnm stores. shares in the retailer have hit a six-month high to scale the top of the stoxx 600. this after record christmas trading boosted its third quarter earnings helping the discount store eradicate all post brexit losses. currently up by 7.3%. will 2017 be the bulls big finale as u.s. stocks enter the new year on a strong uptrend? how much will investor and consumer confidence help businesses? >> stocks are showing new life as 2017 gets underway. the major u.s. indexes hit record highs starting in july. and confidence surged among investors and consumers after the election of a president promising business friendly policies. while these trends seem to have momentum, investors should probably view further gains of stocks as a latter phase of a bull market not the start of a multi-year boom. some are comparing this moment to the dawn of the reagan era, the trump administration will begin against a far different back drop. the s&p 500 is up 230% since march 2009. the index had a positive retur