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S&P 500 and Dow close in record territory
09-Apr-21 16:15 ET

Dow +297.03 at 33800.60, Nasdaq +70.88 at 13900.22, S&P +31.63 at 4128.80

https://www.briefing.com/stock-market-update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.8%) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.9%) set intraday and closing record highs on Friday, with the benchmark index topping the 4100 level for the first time. The Nasdaq Composite (+0.5%) overcame an early decline to close positive. The Russell 2000 (+0.04%) sneaked into the green amid a strong finish in the broader market.

The session started with the market brushing off a hotter-than-expected Producer Price Index report for March, which showed producer prices for final demand increase 1.0% m/m (Briefing.com consensus +0.5%) and 4.2% yr/yr. Despite the potential for a spillover into consumer prices, the market trusted the Fed's thinking it'll be transitory.

The difference makers today came out of the heavily-weighted S&P 500 information technology (+1.0%) and consumer discretionary (+1.2%) sectors, which boasted strong performances from Apple (AAPL 133.00, +2.64, +2.0%) and Amazon (AMZN 3372.20, +72.90, +2.2%) in a continuation of their monthly outperformances.

Buying activity increased noticeably into the close on no confirmed catalyst, with the health care (+1.2%), industrials (+1.0%), and financials (+0.9%) sectors rounding out the top spots. Conversely, the energy (-0.5%), consumer staples (-0.1%), and utilities (-0.1%) sectors closed slightly lower.

The health care sector advanced without the leadership of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ 161.25, -1.72, -1.0%), which lost ground amid concerns surrounding the rollout and safety of its COVID-19 vaccine. Within the industrials sector, Boeing (BA 252.36, -2.59, -1.0%) advised customers to address a potential electrical issue in a specific group of 737 MAX planes prior to further operations.

Separately, the latest Flow Show report from BofA Securities indicated that total global equity inflows over the past five months ($576 billion) has exceeded total inflows for the past 12 years ($425 billion). Some attributed this eye-popping statistic to the muted price action during most of the day, but there still appeared to be an underlying hunger for risk assets.

In the Treasury market, the 10-yr yield settled three basis points higher at 1.67%, or slightly lower than where it was trading immediately before, and after, the PPI data. The 2-yr yield increased one basis point to 0.15%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.1% to 92.17. WTI crude futures decreased 0.5%, or $0.32, to $59.29/bbl.

Reviewing Friday's economic data:

The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 1.0% month-over-month in March (Briefing.com consensus +0.5%). The index for final demand, excluding food and energy, jumped 0.7% m/m (Briefing.com consensus +0.2%. On a year-over-year basis, the index for final demand was up 4.2% (highest since 12 months ending September 2011), versus 2.8% in February. The index for final demand, excluding food and energy, was up 3.1% yr/yr, versus 2.5% in February.
The key takeaway from the report isn't in the headline numbers. They are important, but the key takeaway is the pipeline pressures evident in the index for processed goods for intermediate demand, which increased 4.0% m/m in March (largest jump since August 1974), and in the index for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand, which surged 9.3% m/m (highest since November 2006). Those large increases point to inflation issues that are apt to linger for producers and which could potentially spill over into consumer prices.
Wholesale inventories increased 0.6% m/m in February (Briefing.com consensus 0.5%) following an upwardly revised 1.4% increase (from +1.3%) in January.

Looking ahead, investors will receive the March Treasury Budget on Monday.

Russell 2000 +13.6% YTD
Dow Jones Industrial Average +10.4% YTD
S&P 500 +9.9% YTD
Nasdaq Composite +7.9% YTD



Crude futures settle in negative territory
09-Apr-21 15:30 ET

Dow +200.34 at 33703.91, Nasdaq +24.07 at 13853.41, S&P +18.93 at 4116.10
[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 is seeing an uptick to session highs with a 0.5% gain. Any positive finish would be good for a record close.

One last look at the S&P 500 sectors shows information technology (+0.6%), consumer discretionary (+0.8%), and health care (+0.8%) providing the leadership, while the energy (-0.5%), communication services (-0.2%), consumer staples (-0.2%), and utilities (-0.1%) sectors trade lower.

WTI crude futures settled lower by 0.5%, or $0.32, to $59.29/bbl.