Modest Strength Remains Visible On Wall Street

Stocks moved modestly higher early in the session on Tuesday and remain mostly positive in afternoon trading. The major averages have all moved to the upside on the day, with the Dow on pace to close higher for the fifth consecutive session.

Currently, the major averages are just off their highs of the session. The Dow is up 73.85 points or 0.2 percent at 38,926.12, the Nasdaq is up 40.57 points or 0.3 percent at 16,389.82 and the S&P 500 is up 17.22 points or 0.3 percent at 5,197.96.

The modest strength on Wall Street comes as stocks continue to benefit from renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates.

Relatively dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell combined with weaker-than-expected job growth in April have largely eliminated short-lived concerns the Fed might actually consider raising rates.

Investors have instead grown increasingly confident about a rate cut in the coming months, with the chances rates will be lower by September now at 89.1 percent, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.

However, traders seem reluctant to make more significant moves as they take a breather following the notable advance in recent sessions. The surge has lifted the major averages to their best levels in almost a month.

Among individual stocks, shares of Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) have moved sharply higher after the telehealth company reported better than expected first quarter results and provided upbeat second quarter revenue guidance.

Apparel retailer Gap (GPS) has also shown a strong move to the upside after Citi upgraded its rating on the company’s stock to Buy from Neutral.

On the other hand, shares of Disney (DIS) are seeing significant weakness even though the entertainment giant reported better than expected fiscal third quarter earnings.

Sector News

Oil service stocks have shown a significant move to the upside on the day, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 1.4 percent.

The strength among oil service stocks comes amid an increase by the price of crude oil, with crude for June delivery climbing $0.44 to $78.92 a barrel.

Considerable strength is also visible among commercial real estate stocks, as reflected by the 1.1 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index.

Pharmaceutical and steel stocks are also seeing some strength, while airline stocks have moved sharply lower, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.1 percent.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.6 percent and South Korea’s Kospi surged by 2.2 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index crept up by 0.2 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index shot up by 1.4 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index jumped by 1.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 1.0 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries are extending the upward trend seen over the past several sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.4 basis points at 4.445 percent.

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