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Wall Street closed higher on Wednesday, led by tech and industrial stocks. Markets rebounded from the previous session's CPI-triggered sell-off. The U.S. 10-year treasury yield receded. All of the major stock indexes ended in the green.
How Did the Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 151.52 points, or 0.4%, to close at 38,424.27. Nineteen components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 11 ended in negative.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 203.55 points, or 1.3%, to close at 15,859.15.
The S&P 500 added 47.45 points, or 1%, to close at 5,000.62. Nine of the 11 broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green. The Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI), the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) advanced 1.7%, 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) declined 0.2%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) decreased 9.3% to 14.38. Advancing issues outnumbered the declining ones on the S&P 500 by a 3.6-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 recorded 37 new highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq posted 92 new highs and 68 new lows.
Markets Calm Down From CPI-Triggered Sell-Off
On Wednesday, markets corrected course from the previous session’s sell-off and rebounded with all three major benchmarks in the green zone.
Small stocks, which were the worst hit on Tuesday over higher interest rate concerns, bounced back more than the rest of the market, with the Russell 2000 index leaping 2.4%.
The Fed has already elevated the Federal Funds rate to its highest level since 2001 in hopes of slowing the overall economy. And it has kept hoping that this is just enough to grind high inflation down to its target rate. However, with inflation numbers for last month coming in high, investors worried that Fed rate cuts would get further delayed, and a sell-off ensued. Comments from Chicago Fed president Austan Goolsbee on Wednesday helped calm nerves a bit. Goolsbee said that the path back to the central bank's 2% inflation target would still be on track even if price increases run a bit hotter than expected over the next few months.
A much calmer bond market, compared to the day before, helped keep things steadier on Wall Street. Bond yields eased after shooting up Tuesday on expectations that the Fed would keep rates high for longer. The yield on the benchmark 10-year treasury note receded to 4.25% from 4.32% late Tuesday. However, it continues to hover well above the level it ended at in January.
Economic Data
Per a government report, for the week ended Feb 9, 2024, U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) increased 12.0 million barrels from the previous week. It had increased 5.5 million barrels in the week prior.
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Stock Market News for Feb 15, 2024
Wall Street closed higher on Wednesday, led by tech and industrial stocks. Markets rebounded from the previous session's CPI-triggered sell-off. The U.S. 10-year treasury yield receded. All of the major stock indexes ended in the green.
How Did the Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 151.52 points, or 0.4%, to close at 38,424.27. Nineteen components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 11 ended in negative.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 203.55 points, or 1.3%, to close at 15,859.15.
The S&P 500 added 47.45 points, or 1%, to close at 5,000.62. Nine of the 11 broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green. The Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI), the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) advanced 1.7%, 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) declined 0.2%.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) decreased 9.3% to 14.38. Advancing issues outnumbered the declining ones on the S&P 500 by a 3.6-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 recorded 37 new highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq posted 92 new highs and 68 new lows.
Markets Calm Down From CPI-Triggered Sell-Off
On Wednesday, markets corrected course from the previous session’s sell-off and rebounded with all three major benchmarks in the green zone.
Small stocks, which were the worst hit on Tuesday over higher interest rate concerns, bounced back more than the rest of the market, with the Russell 2000 index leaping 2.4%.
The Fed has already elevated the Federal Funds rate to its highest level since 2001 in hopes of slowing the overall economy. And it has kept hoping that this is just enough to grind high inflation down to its target rate. However, with inflation numbers for last month coming in high, investors worried that Fed rate cuts would get further delayed, and a sell-off ensued. Comments from Chicago Fed president Austan Goolsbee on Wednesday helped calm nerves a bit. Goolsbee said that the path back to the central bank's 2% inflation target would still be on track even if price increases run a bit hotter than expected over the next few months.
Consequently, shares of Netflix, Inc. (NFLX - Free Report) and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT - Free Report) rose 4.5% and 1.2%, respectively. Netflix currently carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
10-Year Treasury Yield Climbs Down
A much calmer bond market, compared to the day before, helped keep things steadier on Wall Street. Bond yields eased after shooting up Tuesday on expectations that the Fed would keep rates high for longer. The yield on the benchmark 10-year treasury note receded to 4.25% from 4.32% late Tuesday. However, it continues to hover well above the level it ended at in January.
Economic Data
Per a government report, for the week ended Feb 9, 2024, U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) increased 12.0 million barrels from the previous week. It had increased 5.5 million barrels in the week prior.