U.S. Stocks Offset Yesterday’s Pullback, Reach New Record Closing Highs

Stocks moved sharply higher during trading on Friday, extending the rebound from the sell-off seen early in the previous session. With the upward move on the day, all three of the major averages ended the session at new record closing highs.

The major averages reached new highs for the session going into the close. The Dow spiked 448.23 points or 1.3 percent to 34,870.16, the Nasdaq jumped 142.13 points or 1 percent to 14,701.92 and the S&P 500 surged up 48.73 points or 1.1 percent to 4,369.55.

For the holiday shortened week, the Dow edged up by 0.2 percent, while the broader Nasdaq and S&P 500 both rose by 0.4 percent.

The strength on Wall Street came as traders quickly shrugged off the concerns about the global economy that weighed on the markets in early trading on Thursday.

Combined with the recovery attempt seen as yesterday’s trading progressed, the major averages more than offset the early pullback.

Despite worries about the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus, traders seem optimistic the U.S. economy will continue to outperform.

A rebound by treasury yields also generated buying interest, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note bouncing off its lowest closing level since February.

Yields had fallen sharply in recent sessions amid indications the Federal Reserve is not in a hurry to begin scaling back its asset purchase program.

Steel stocks turned in some of the market’s best performances on the day, resulting in a 4.1 percent spike by the NYSE Arca Steel Index.

The rebound by treasury yields also contributed substantial strength among banking stocks, driving the KBW Bank Index up by 3.9 percent.

Oil service stocks also moved sharply higher over the course of the session, resulting in a 2.8 percent spike by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index. The index bounced off its lowest closing level in over a month.

The rally by oil service stocks cane amid a sharp increase by the price of crude oil, with crude for August delivery jumping $1.62 to $74.56 a barrel.

Transportation, brokerage and gold stocks also saw considerable strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, most stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region saw further downside during trading on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index fell by 0.6 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi tumbled by 1.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets showed strong moves back to the upside. While the French CAC 40 Index spiked by 2.1 percent, the German DAX Index surged up by 1.7 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index jumped by 1.3 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries gave back ground after moving sharply higher over the past few sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, advanced 6.8 basis points to 1.356 percent.

Looking Ahead

Following a relatively quiet week on the U.S. economic front, next week’s trading may be impacted by reaction to reports on consumer and producer price inflation, industrial production and retail sales.

Congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is also likely to attract attention along with the Fed’s Beige Book.

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