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Market Snapshot

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

Dow 35462.78 +371.65 (1.06%)
Nasdaq 14194.45 +178.79 (1.28%)
SP 500 4521.54 +37.67 (0.84%)
10-yr Note -25/32 1.962
NYSE Adv 1943 Dec 1313 Vol 890.4 mln
Nasdaq Adv 2864 Dec 1701 Vol 4.2 bln

Industry Watch
Strong: Materials, Consumer Discretionary, Financials, Information Technology
Weak: Energy, Communication Services, Real Estate

Moving the Market

-- Stocks drift higher in relatively broad-based advance, excluding energy stocks

-- 10-yr yield settles at 1.95%, oil prices dip below $90/bbl

-- Amgen (AMGN) jumps 8% on pleasing earnings news

Stocks drift higher along with interest rates
08-Feb-22 16:20 ET
Dow +371.65 at 35462.78, Nasdaq +178.79 at 14194.45, S&P +37.67 at 4521.54

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 gained 0.8% on Tuesday, as the market drifted higher while investors digested another increase in interest rates and individual storylines. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (+1.1%), Nasdaq Composite (+1.3%), and Russell 2000 (+1.6%) each outperformed the benchmark index.

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sectors closed higher, including five that gained at least 1.0%. The materials sector (+1.6%) was the top-performer, and the heavily-weighted information technology sector (+1.3%) wasn't too far behind.

The energy sector (-2.1%), on the other hand, declined 2% as oil prices fell below $90 per barrel ($89.43, -1.84, -2.0%) amid speculation that the U.S. could allow Iran to increase its oil exports. Reports indicated that U.S.-Iran nuclear talks have made progress.

Regarding interest rates, the 10-yr yield came within three basis points of the 2.00% level before setting at 1.95%, or four basis points above yesterday's settlement. The 2-yr yield rose five basis points to 1.34% amid lingering expectations for five rate hikes this year. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.2% to 95.60.

Encouragingly, the higher rates benefited the financials sector (+1.4%) without hurting the growth stocks. The Russell 3000 Growth Index rose 1.1%, besting the 0.7% gain in the Russell 3000 Value Index. For what it's worth, the S&P 500 closed essentially at yesterday's high (4521.86).

Amgen (AMGN 241.01, +17.48, +7.8%), meanwhile, rose 8% after the Dow component reported better-than-expected earnings results along with encouraging EPS guidance. Pfizer (PFE 51.70, -1.51, -2.8%) fell 3% after issuing disappointing full-year guidance.

Peloton (PTON 37.27, +7.52, +25.3%) also reported downside guidance in addition to below-consensus fiscal Q2 results, but shares jumped 25% after the company announced a CEO change and cost-cutting measures. Shareholders were hopeful that the company could turn itself around or at least put itself in a more valuable position for a takeover.

In M&A news, Mandiant (MNDT 17.75, +2.69, +17.9%) spiked 18% after Bloomberg reported that Microsoft (MSFT 304.56, +3.61, +1.2%) might bid for the company. NVIDIA (NVDA 251.08, +3.80, +1.5%) officially terminated its acquisition of Arm Holdings.

Reviewing Tuesday's economic data:

The December Trade Balance Report showed a widening in the trade deficit to $80.7 billion (Briefing.com consensus -$79.6 billion) from an upwardly revised $79.3 billion (from -$80.2 billion) in November. December exports were $3.4 billion more than November exports while December imports were $4.8 million more than November imports.
The key takeaway from the report is that the Omicron variant didn't seriously disrupt trade activity in December, although there were signs of a slowdown in China as U.S. goods exports there decreased by $2.2 billion.
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index for January decreased to 97.1 from 98.9 in December.

Looking ahead, investors will receive Wholesale Inventories for December and the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index on Wednesday.

Dow Jones Industrial Average -2.4% YTD
S&P 500 -5.1% YTD
Russell 2000 -8.9% YTD
Nasdaq Composite -9.3% YTD

Crude futures dip below $90 per barrel amid U.S.-Iran talks
08-Feb-22 15:30 ET
Dow +332.91 at 35424.04, Nasdaq +113.36 at 14129.02, S&P +29.24 at 4513.11

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 is up 0.6% after receiving modest bump earlier this hour on no specific news.

One last look at the sectors shows materials (+1.4%), financials (+1.4%), consumer discretionary (+1.3%), and information technology (+1.0%) still trading higher by at least 1.0%. Conversely, the energy sector (-2.5%) remains an eye sore with a 2.5% decline due to the decline in oil prices.

WTI crude futures settled lower by 2.0%, or $1.84, to $89.43/bbl amid reports indicating that U.S.-Iran nuclear talks have made progress, raising the possibility that Iran would be allowed to increase its oil exports.