U.S. Stocks Remain Mostly Positive In Afternoon Trading
Stocks moved mostly higher early in the session and continue turn in a strong performance in afternoon trading on Monday. With the upward move, the major averages are extending the significant rally seen to close out the previous week.
In recent trading, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 have reached new highs for the session. The Nasdaq is up 128.94 points or 0.8 percent at 16,285.26, the S&P 500 is up 36.67 points or 0.7 percent at 5,164.46 and the Dow is up 137.92 points or 0.4 percent at 38,813.60.
Stocks continue to benefit from the upward momentum seen over the two previous sessions, which partly reflected renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates.
Relatively dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell combined with weaker-than-expected job growth in April have largely eliminated short-lived concerns the Fed might actually consider raising rates.
Investors have instead grown increasingly confident about a rate cut in the coming months, with the chances rates will be lower by September now at 83.5 percent, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.
Overall trading activity remains somewhat subdued, however, as a lack of major U.S. economic data keeps some traders on the sidelines.
The economic calendar remains relatively quiet throughout the week, although a preliminary reading on consumer sentiment in May might attract some attention along with remarks by several Fed officials.
Among individual stocks, shares of Bausch + Lomb (BLCO) have moved sharply higher on the day after Morgan Stanley upgraded its rating on the eye care company’s stock to Overweight from Equal Weight.
Media and entertainment giant Paramount Global (PARA) has also surged after a report from the New York Times said the company decided to formally open negotiations with a bidding group led by Sony Pictures Entertainment and the private equity giant Apollo.
Meanwhile, shares of Spirit Airlines (SAVE) have plummeted after the discount carrier reported a slightly wider than expected first quarter loss and provided disappointing second quarter revenue guidance.
Sector News
Gold stocks continue to see significant strength on the day, resulting in a 2.2 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.
The rally by gold stocks comes amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, with gold for June delivery climbing $24.70 to $2,333.30 an ounce.
Computer hardware stocks have also shown a significant move to the upside, driving the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 2.0 percent.
Semiconductor, brokerage and housing stocks are also seeing notable strength, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday, with markets in Japan and South Korea closed for holidays. China’s Shanghai Composite Index rallied by 1.2 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed by 0.6 percent.
The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index jumped by 1.0 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index both rose by 0.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have pulled back near the unchanged line after seeing initial strength. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 4.506 percent.
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