Monthly Archives: December 2019

Stocks Jump After Trump Tweet

THURSDAY – Stocks jumped in early trading Thursday after President Donald Trump said China and the U.S. were zeroing in on a trade deal, lifting hope that an agreement will be reached before a key deadline.

The S&P 500 hit a record high, rising 0.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 250 points higher, or 0.9%. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.8%.

Trump said in a tweet both sides were getting “VERY close to a BIG DEAL with China. They want it, and so do we!”

His tweet comes after Reuters reported that Trump was meeting with his top trade officials on Thursday ahead of a Sunday trade deadline. If an agreement is not reached by then, additional U.S. levies on Chinese products will take effect.

Stocks started December on the wrong foot as worries around U.S.-China trade relations increased. In the first two sessions of the month, the Dow lost more than 500 points.

Still, the major averages are up sharply for the year. The S&P 500 and Dow have jumped 25.3% and 19.7%, respectively, year to date. The Nasdaq is up around 30%.

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Disappointing Manufacturing Data Drops Stocks

MONDAY – Stocks dropped on Monday, the first trading day of December, as investors digested disappointing economic data along with the latest trade news after capping a month that featured blistering gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 251 points, or 0.9%. The S&P 500 pulled back 0.9% while the Nasdaq Composite traded 1.4% lower. The major averages started off the session with slight gains before turning lower.

Shares of Facebook, Amazon, Alphabet and Apple all dropped more than 1%. Netflix traded 2.7% lower. Roku, which has been one of the hottest stocks of 2019, plummeted more than 15%.

The Cboe Volatility Index, which is regarded as the best fear gauge in the market, rose to 14.8 from 12.6.

Monday’s losses came after a strong performance in November. The major averages had their biggest monthly gains since June, rallying to record highs. The S&P 500 climbed 3.4% last month while the Dow advanced 3.7%. The Nasdaq rallied 4.5%.

Manufacturing activity in the U.S. continued to contract last month, the Institute for Supply Management said. The ISM Manufacturing PMI dipped to 48.1 in November. That’s below an estimate of 49.4. Stocks hit their session lows after the data was released.

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