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Stocks Rebound From 2-Year Low

TUESDAY – Stocks rose Tuesday, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 bounced back from their lowest closing levels in nearly two years.

The British pound rebounded slightly after plunging to a record low against the dollar earlier in the week. Sterling traded more than 1% higher at $1.087 per dollar after hitting an all-time low of $1.0382.

Treasury yields also came off their highs, boosting sentiment. The benchmark 10-year yield dipped nearly 5 basis points to 3.823%.

Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans signaled some apprehension about the central bank raising rates too quickly to fight inflation, in contrast to a slew of Fed officials who recently reiterated a tough stance against rising prices.

The move comes after five straight days of losses for stocks, with the S&P 500 closing at its lowest level since 2020. The Dow dropped more than 300 points on Monday, putting it in a bear market after falling more than 20% below its record high. The 30-stock average also posted its lowest closing level since late 2020.

Technical indicators show that the selling has been historic. According to Bespoke Investment Group, the 10-day advance decline line for the S&P 500 has hit a record low, meaning market breadth is at its worst level in at least 32 years.

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Dow Starts Monday Off Lower

MONDAY – The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined on Monday as surging interest rates and foreign currency turmoil pressured markets.

The British pound dropped to a record low on Monday against the U.S. dollar. Sterling at one point fell 4% to an all-time low of $1.0382. The Federal Reserve’s aggressive hiking campaign, coupled with U.K.’s tax cuts announced last week has caused the U.S. dollar to surge. The euro hit the lowest vs. the dollar since 2002. A surging greenback can hurt the profits of U.S. multinationals and also wreak havoc on global trade, with so much of it transacted in dollars.

Traders will be closely watching the S&P 500 on Monday for any break below its bear market low. The S&P’s low close for the year in June was 3,666.77. It closed Friday at 3,693.23 after trading briefly below that close. The benchmark’s intraday low for the year is 3,636.87. Any trade below those levels could drive more selling in the market.

On Friday, stocks ended a brutal week with the blue-chip Dow finding a new intraday low for the year and closing lower by 486 points. The broad-market S&P 500 temporarily broke below its June closing low and ended down 1.7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 1.8%.

Another super-sized rate hike by the Federal Reserve last week was the catalyst for the latest leg downward in markets. The central bank indicated it could raise rates as high as 4.6% before pulling back. The forecast also shows the Fed plans be aggressive this year, hiking rates to 4.4% before 2022 ends.

Bond yields soared after the Fed enacted another rate hike of 75 basis points. The 2-year and 10-year Treasury rates hit highs not seen in over a decade. On Friday, Goldman Sachs slashed its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 3,600 from 4,300.

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Stocks Tumble Again

MONDAY – U.S. stocks dropped on Monday morning, putting the S&P 500 on track to fall back into bear market territory and possibly to a new low for 2022. A jump in short-term rates drove the negative sentiment as investors still reeling from a hotter-than-expected inflation report on Friday braced for the Federal Reserve to raise rates later in the week.

The short-term 2-year Treasury yield rose by 17 basis points to more than 3.22% Monday, reaching its highest level since 2007 as investors bet the Fed may have to get even more aggressive to squash inflation. At one point in the session, the 2-year rate traded above its 10-year counterpart for the first time since April, a so-called yield curve inversion seen as an indicator of a recession.

The major averages last week posted their biggest weekly declines since late January as investors grew increasingly concerned rising inflation will tip the economy into a recession. The Dow and S&P 500 fell 4.6% and 5.1%, respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 5.6%. A chunk of those losses came Friday, when hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data spooked investors. The Dow dropped 880 points, or 2.7%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq lost 2.9% and 3.5%, respectively.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that the U.S. consumer price index rose last month by 8.6% from a year ago, its fastest increase since December 1981. That gain topped economists’ expectations. The so-called core CPI, which strips out food and energy prices, also came in above estimates at 6%.

On top of that, the preliminary June reading for the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index registered at a record low of 50.2.

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Stocks Rise Slightly After Fed Selloff

THURSDAY – Stocks rose slightly Thursday as the market tried to recover from back-to-back losing sessions, while traders digested the Federal Reserve’s plans to tighten monetary policy.

The Fed on Wednesday released the minutes from its March meeting, which showed that officials planed to reduce their trillions in bond holdings with a consensus amount around $95 billion. Meanwhile, policymakers indicated that one or more 50 basis-point interest rate hikes could be warranted to battle surging inflation.

Officials “generally agreed” that a maximum of $60 billion in Treasuries and $35 billion in mortgage-backed securities would be allowed to roll off, phased in over three months and likely starting in May.

The news sent the blue-chip Dow down more than 100 points Wednesday, while the S&P 500 slid 1%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped another 2.2%, bringing its week-to-date losses to 2.6%. Those losses came after comments from Fed Governor Lael Brainard pushed stock prices lower on Tuesday.

Investors await the weekly jobless claims data Thursday morning, which is expected to show a total of 200,000 claims filed.

Crude prices ticked higher after falling in the previous session. U.S. oil gained 0.7% to $96.94 per barrel, while international Brent advanced 0.9% to $101.95.

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Stock Start Week Flat – Twitter Rockets

MONDAY – U.S. stocks were mostly flat Monday, as traders monitor the bond market’s warning signals about the economy.

Twitter ($TWTR) shares surged more than 25% after SEC filings revealed Elon Musk purchased a more than 9% passive stake in the social media company. It comes less than a week after Musk polled his followers, questioning whether the social media giant follows free speech principles. Based on Twitter’s Friday closing price, the stake is worth $2.89 billion.

An often-cited recession signal was triggered Thursday evening when the the 2-year and 10-year Treasury yields inverted for the first time since 2019. The 5-year note yield is also trading above its 30-year counterpart.

Investors are also monitoring the latest developments in Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Sunday that Western nations will impost additional sanctions on Russia in the coming days.

Seasonally, April is generally one of the best months for stocks, edging higher in the last 20 years by 2.41% on average, MKM Partners’ JC O’Hara wrote in a note. Within the 16 of the last 17 Aprils, the S&P has also inched higher.

Friday’s positive session came despite March’s employment report, which fell short of economists’ estimates. The U.S. economy added 431,000 jobs during the month, while estimates from Dow Jones called for 490,000.

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Stocks Start Week Flat

MONDAY – Stocks were steady Monday morning as a week filled with key economic reports kicked off, and investors continue to keep a close eye on the Fed’s planned interest rate hikes.

Parts of The Treasury yield curve inverted on Monday, raising some recession concerns. Earlier on Monday, the yield on the 5-year Treasury note rose to 2.6361%, while the 30-year yield was down less than 1 basis point to 2.6004%.

However, the main yield spread that traders watch — the spread between the 2-year and the 10-year rate — remained positive for now.

The Dow and S&P 500 rose on Friday to close out their second consecutive winning week. The Dow gained 153 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 advanced 0.5% and has more than erased its losses since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.2% but still finished the week in the green.

The moves came as investors continue to monitor developments in Russia’s war on Ukraine and expectations about the Fed’s plans to hike interest rates.

Investors are looking forward to the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, this week. The JOLTS report is one set of employment data that the Federal Reserve is watching closely as it tightens monetary policy.

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Stocks Now Mixed, S&P Still Higher

HTML clipboard FRIDAY – The S&P 500 was steady Friday as the benchmark index looked to close out its second consecutive positive week.

Overall, stocks were mixed early.

For the week, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are up more than 1% and 2%, respectively. The Dow is marginally higher.

The S&P 500 is now up more than 3% in March, more than erasing its losses since Russia invaded Ukraine late last month.

The rebound has come even as the war in Ukraine continues and the Federal Reserve is set to hike interest rates several more times this year – some analysts saying as many as seven increases.

On Monday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell vowed to be tough on inflation. The remarks came after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the first time since 2018 last week, with hikes coming at each of the six remaining policy meetings this year.

Powell noted rate hikes could go from quarter-percentage-point moves to more aggressive half-point increases.

The central bank chief’s comments led Wall Street to raise rate hike expectations, with firms from Goldman Sachs to Bank of America penciling in half-point hikes in future Fed meetings this year.

Meanwhile, investors looked to promising signs the economy can run strong even as the Fed tightens monetary policy to address inflation.

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Stocks Jump On Easing Tensions

TUESDAY – U.S. stocks jumped on Tuesday after Russia appeared to be backing away from an immediate invasion of Ukraine, cooling geopolitical tensions that have knocked the stock market down the last three days.

The Russian Defense Ministry said it had begun returning some troops to deployment bases after training exercises near the Ukrainian border.

WTI crude prices fell 3%, while the 10-year Treasury yield jumped to 2.04% as tensions eased. The VanEck Russia ETF, a U.S.-traded fund which invests in big Russian stocks, jumped nearly 5% in premarket trading.

In addition to the Ukraine drama, investors will get another look at inflation Tuesday. The January producer price index, which measures final-demand wholesale prices, will be released at 8:30 and is expected to show a monthly gain of 0.5%.

Wall Street is coming off a volatile Monday trading session.

The Dow closed lower by 171.89 points, or 0.5%, after falling more than 400 points at one point. The S&P 500 dropped as much as 1.2% before ending the day 0.4% lower. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9% at one point before closing just below the flatline.

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Stocks Rise Ahead of Earnings

U.S. stock futures rose in early morning trading on Wednesday as investors digested another batch of corporate earnings and tech shares looked to build on their rebound.

Through Tuesday’s close, the Nasdaq Composite has gained more than 6% from its recent low on Jan. 27 after falling into correction territory earlier this year.

Mortgage applications dropped 10% week over week, however, as the rise in interest rates in recent months appears to have dampened demand among homebuyers.

Yields have risen this year in part because of a more aggressive stance from the Federal Reserve. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic told CNBC on Wednesday that three rate hikes are possible this year but that the central bank is not locked in to any path and will watch how the economy responds.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added more than 370 points, helped by a 7.8% pop in Amgen on the back of its strong earnings report. The S&P 500 also registered a gain, climbing 0.8%. The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite rose 1.3%.

As of the closing bell on Tuesday, nearly 60% of all S&P 500 companies have reported fourth-quarter earnings and roughly 77% have topped Wall Street’s earnings estimates, according to FactSet.

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Brexit & Trade Worried Hamper Stocks

WEDNESDAY – U.S. stocks were lower Wednesday as worries over U.S.-China trade relations dampened sentiment around a record-setting rally.

The Wall Street Journal reported, citing former Trump administration officials, that the ongoing trade talks could hit an impasse that would derail a so-called “phase one” trade deal. Uncertainty around trade also grew after the Senate passed a bill supporting Hong Kong protesters. This led China to accuse the U.S. of interfering in domestic affairs.

The Dow pulled back from record highs on Tuesday amid losses from Boeing and Home Depot while investors monitored earnings and developments in the U.S.-China trade talks. There is lingering uncertainty among investors about the possibility of a deal between both countries, despite comments last month suggesting they were close to signing a partial agreement.

Elsewhere, investors are awaiting minutes from the Federal Reserve’s October policy meeting at 2 p.m. The U.S. central bank decided to lower the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a range of 1.5% to 1.75% late last month.

In corporate news, Target shares jumped more than 8% in the premarket after the retailer posted quarterly results that easily beat expectations. Target also raised its full-year profit outlook.

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