U.S. Stocks Hovering Firmly In Positive Territory In Mid-Day Trading

Stocks continue to turn in a strong performance in mid-day trading on Monday after showing a strong move to the upside early in the session. The major averages have all moved notably higher on the day, with the Dow posting a standout gain.

Currently, the major averages are hovering firmly in positive territory. The Dow is up 51.321 points or 1.5 percent at 33,803.29, the Nasdaq is up 95.73 points or 0.7 percent at 14,126.10 and the S&P 500 is up 52.31 points or 1.3 percent at 4,218.76.

The rebound on Wall Street partly reflects bargain hunting after the steep drop seen last Friday dragged the Dow down to its lowest closing level in well over two months.

The Dow closed lower for five straight sessions and tumbled 3.4 percent last week, marking the worst week for the blue chip index since last October.

Last week’s sell-off came amid concerns about the outlook for monetary policy after the Federal Reserve latest projections called for two interest rates hikes in 2023.

St. Louis Fed President Jim Bullard told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” the first rate hike by the Fed could come as soon as next year.

Looking ahead, Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to testify before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis on Tuesday.

Powell is due to discuss the Fed’s response to the pandemic but could also face questions about the outlook for monetary policy.

Reports on new and existing home sales, durable goods orders and personal income and spending may also attract attention in the coming days.

Sector News

Energy stocks continue to turn in some of the market’s best performances on the day, moving sharply higher along with the price of crude oil. Crude for July delivery is jumping $1.35 to $72.99 a barrel.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is up by 3.9 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index is up by 3 percent.

Substantial strength also remains visible among banking stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent surge by the KBW Bank Index. The index is rebounding off a two-month closing low.

Chemical stocks also continue to turn in a strong performance in mid-day trading, with the S&P Chemical Sector Index up by 2.2 percent after ending the previous session at its lowest closing level in over two months.

Transportation, brokerage and steel stocks are also seeing notable strength on the day, regaining ground following recent weakness.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index plummeted by 3.3 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slumped by 1.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index jumped by 1 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index climbed by 0.6 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries are giving back ground after moving sharply higher over the two previous sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 2.3 basis points at 1.473 percent.

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