U.S. Stocks Fluctuate Before Closing Mostly Higher
Stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Thursday before ending the day mostly higher. The upward move on the day came after the major averages showed significant moves to the downside over the course of the two previous sessions.
The major averages gave back ground going into the close of trading but remained in positive territory. The Dow rose 87.06 points or 0.3 percent to 34,583.57, the Nasdaq inched up 8.48 points or 0.1 percent to 13,897.30 and the S&P 500 climbed 19.06 points or 0.4 percent to 4,500.21.
The higher close on Wall Street was partly due to strength among pharmaceutical and healthcare stocks, with the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index and the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index jumping by 2.1 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively.
Considerable strength was also visible among computer hardware stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.
HP Inc. (HPQ) led the sector higher, spiking by 14.8 percent after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) revealed an 11.4 percent stake in the personal computer and printer maker.
Gold, biotechnology and oil stocks also saw strength on the day, while airline stocks extended the steep drop seen in the previous session.
The volatility seen over the course of the session came as traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves amid uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets following recent volatility.
Stocks started off the week on a strong note on Monday, but pulled back sharply on Tuesday and Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for monetary policy.
With the Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy meeting almost a month away, traders are likely to keep a close eye on the latest economic data for clues about how aggressive the central bank will be.
The Labor Department released a report this morning showing a modest decrease by first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended April 2nd.
The report showed initial jobless claims dipped to 166,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 171,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 200,000 from the 202,000 originally reported for the previous week.
The economic calendar is relatively quiet for the rest of this week but will pick up next week with the release of reports on consumer and producer price inflation, retail sales and industrial production.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved notably lower during trading on Thursday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.7 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index dove by 1.4 percent.
The major European markets also moved to the downside over the course of the session. While the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index both fell by 0.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries extended the notable downward move seen in recent sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose 4.3 basis points to a new three-year closing high of 2.652 percent.
Looking Ahead
With a report on wholesale inventories not likely to attract much attention on Friday, traders may look to other areas for motivation.
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