U.S. Stocks Close Out Week With Gains
July 12 2019 - 3:47PM
Dow Jones News
By Lauren Almeida and Corrie Driebusch
U.S. stocks climbed Friday after major central banks set the
stage for looser monetary policy.
Major indexes are up more than 2% in July, adding to huge gains
in June, even as worries about the broader U.S. economy continue.
This week provided another jolt to the market as comments by
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell appeared to all but
guarantee the central bank could cut interest rates as soon as
later this month, some analysts said. This sparked a wave of money
into U.S. stocks.
"The most important thing for the market is the Fed is not going
to hike rates," said Scott Wren, senior global equity strategist
for Wells Fargo Investment Institute. "We have modest growth,
modest inflation, we're not fighting the Fed and it looks like
we'll have a trade deal, so it makes sense to me where the market
is."
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 243.95 points, or 0.9%, a
day after the benchmark gauge topped 27000 for the first time. The
S&P 500 gained 0.5%, closing above 3000. Though the index had
breached the 3000 level during the trading session the past two
days, it had yet to close above that level.
The Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.6%, its gains tempered by
weakness in biotechnology firms. Earlier, the Nasdaq Biotechnology
index declined 1.4% in recent trading. Shares of Illumina, the
maker of gene-sequencing machines, plummeted 16% after the San
Diego company lowered expectations for second-quarter revenue.
Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year Treasurys edged down to 2.121%,
from 2.122% Thursday. Yields fall when bond prices rise. For the
week, yields rose as some data showed mounting inflation.
In Europe, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index rose less than
0.1%. Shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev slipped 1.5% after the
company's Asian unit said its IPO would price in the lower half of
its range. Among the biggest gainers were the chemicals and auto
sectors. German car maker Daimler was the only exception in its
industry, falling 1.1% after it issued a profit warning.
In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.4% and Japan's
Nikkei ticked up 0.2%.
Data released Friday morning showed Eurozone industrial
production rose sharply in May, raising hopes that the long
slowdown in the region's manufacturing sector could be leveling
off.
Minutes from the European Central Bank's recent meeting released
on Thursday signaled fresh stimulus was under consideration.
Earlier in the week, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said
the economic outlook hadn't improved, hinting at a coming
interest-rate cut.
"Interest rates are low and they probably will remain lower for
longer," said Christopher Peel, chief investment officer at
Tavistock Wealth.
U.S.-traded crude oil rose 0.3% to $60.39 a barrel, as traders
anticipated supply disruptions from a storm in the Gulf of Mexico
and rising tensions in the Middle East.
Write to Lauren Almeida at lauren.almeida@wsj.com and Corrie
Driebusch at corrie.driebusch@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 12, 2019 16:32 ET (20:32 GMT)
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