"Successful trading is about finding the rules that work and then sticking to those rules." — William O'Neil
Solid economic recovery data sent the cyclical sectors higher today while other sectors saw modest gains. Data included positive Nonfarm Employment change, Pending Home Sales, and Crude Oil Inventories. After an indecisive candle yesterday, the S&P 500 set a new record to close the quarter.
Consumer confidence numbers helped send Apple and Microsoft higher and drive gains in the Nasdaq. The gains were not spread broadly across the index, with more declining stocks than advancing stocks.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq moved higher today, setting more records, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Russell 2000 took a step back. New fears of pandemic lockdowns in Asia sent Energy and Industrial stocks lower.
It was a great week across all major indexes. The week opened with a gain on Monday that erased losses from the prior Friday. Once investors had a chance to absorb the new Fed hawkish stance and get past a quadruple witching day, they were ready to push back into growth stocks and see the markets another step upward.
Energy ( XLE ) and Financials ( XLF ) topped the sector list this week. Energy continues to rise while crude oil prices hit record highs. Financials ( XLF ) is recovering along with yields on Treasury Bonds, which both were hit by the hawkish stance from the Fed last week.
The S&P 500 closed at another record on Friday while the Nasdaq couldn’t make new gains. Economic data is sending mixed signals on the progress of the recovery. For example, while higher than the previous month, consumer data was not as high as analysts expected.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new record closes today, and gains were broad across sectors and stocks. The Russell 2000 also had gains ahead of the $10 trillion-dollar rebalancing happening this weekend.
Mixed economic data seemed to bring mixed reactions in the market today. The result is a day of slim gains across the market while the indices pause after a couple of days of gains.
It was a record-setting day for the Nasdaq, setting a new all-time high for the first time since April. The other major indexes also had good gains for the day, while the sector list mainly was positive. Investors responded to better than expected existing home sales data and no new surprises from Fed Jerome Powell’s testimony to congress.
Investors moved back into equities on Monday, helping markets rebound from Friday’s sell-off. All major indexes and sectors moved higher while stocks ended the day balanced across gains and losses.
