Following the pullback seen over the two previous sessions, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Wednesday. The major averages saw initial weakness but climbed firmly into positive territory as the day progressed.
The major averages saw further upside going into the close, ending the session near their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 316.01 points or 0.9 percent to 34,137.31, the Nasdaq surged up 163.95 points or 1.2 percent to 13,950.22 and the S&P 500 advanced 38.48 points or 0.9 percent to 4,173.42.
The rebound on Wall Street came after the pullback seen over the two previous sessions dragged the Dow and the S&P 500 well off last Friday’s record highs.
Despite concerns about high valuations, traders have largely been reluctant to sell stocks amid worries about missing out on further upside.
Stocks linked to the economy reopening saw significant strength on the day, with shares of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) spiking by 10.3 percent.
The jump by Norwegian comes after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the cruise line operators stock to Buy from Neutral. Rivals Carnival (CCL) and Royal Caribbean (RCL) are also posting strong gains.
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), Edwards Lifesciences (EW), and Tenet Healthcare (THC) also moved notably higher after reporting better than expected quarterly results.
On the other hand, shares of Netflix (NFLX) moved sharply lower, with the video streaming giant tumbling by 7.4 percent.
The steep drop by Netflix came after the company reported first quarter earnings and revenues that beat estimates but much weaker than expected subscriber growth.
Sector News
Reflecting the strength among reopening plays, airline stocks showed a strong move back to the upside, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 3 percent. The index rebounded after tumbling to a two-month closing low on Tuesday.
Substantial strength also emerged among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.8 percent jump by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
Chemical stocks also turned in a strong performance, with the S&P Chemical Sector Index surging up by 2.3 percent to a record closing high.
Gold, steel and banking stocks also saw considerable strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index plunged by 2 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index tumbled by 1.8 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index rose by 0.5 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries showed a lack of direction before ending the session nearly unchanged. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, inched up by less than a basis point to 1.564 percent.
Looking Ahead
Following several quiet days on the U.S. economic front, trading on Thursday may be impacted by reaction to reports on weekly jobless claims and existing home sales.
On the earnings front, Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), Discover Financial Services (DFS), Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and Whirlpool (WHR) are among the companies releasing their quarterly results after the close of today’s trading.
American Airlines (AAL), AT&T (T), Biogen (BIIB), D.R. Horton (DHI), Dow (DOW) and Southwest Airlines (LUV) are also among the companies due to report their results before the start of trading on Thursday.
U.S. Stocks Show Strong Move Back To The Upside
2021-04-21 20:17:15
