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US stocks rose on Monday to kick off a busy first full week of trading of the month, with investors awaiting comments from Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell and Friday’s jobs report for more clarity on policy. from the central bank.
The high-tech Nasdaq Composite (COMP.IND) up 0.93% to 11,797.83 points in morning trade, helped by strength in Apple shares (AAPL) and other technology stocks. The Benchmark S&P 500 Index (SP500) added 0.59% at 4,069.32 points, while the blue-chip Dow (DJI) was up to 0.23% to 33,469.10 points.
Of the S&P’s 11 sectors, eight were trading in the green, led by Technology and Communication Services. Materials, Energy and Health were the three losers.
The S&P 500 (SP500) posted a weekly gain of nearly 2% on Friday and snapped a three-week losing streak, with market participants significantly recalibrating their expectations for the Fed’s top rate after economic data strengthened. the case for further adjustment.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will kick off two-day testimony before Senate and House committees on Tuesday and Wednesday. His comments will be closely watched and will set expectations for the central bank’s monetary policy committee meeting later this month. Friday’s jobs report is also on the radar and will be watched for clues about a highly resilient labor market.
“It’s pretty indisputable to say that the last payroll report released on February 3 was a great moment and that it started a series of events that have meant that the last month has been a struggle for most financial assets, especially bonds ( the worst February on record for Global Agg),” said Jim Reid of Deutsche Bank. “Remember that 36 hours before the payroll release, the relatively ‘dovish’ FOMC had pushed 10-year US yields to hit 3.33%. Last week at their peak they peaked at 4.08% before to close at 3.95% on Friday”.
“As such, if you thought the relatively random number generator that is payrolls is generally overrated, you haven’t seen anything yet as we get closer to Friday’s big number,” he added. “For those who have been on a sabbatical on another planet, last month came in at +517k vs. +223k expected with quite substantial upward revisions from the previous year as part of the annual review.”
Treasury yields leveled off Monday after their recent advance. The 10-year Treasury yield (US10Y) held steady at 3.96% and the 2-year yield (US2Y) rose 1 basis point to 4.87%.
In terms of economic data, factory orders for January beat the forecast figure of -1.8%, as they showed -1.6%.
Among active stocks, DexCom (DXCM) was the top percentage loser in the S&P 500 (SP500) as the medical device company gave up some of the big gains it made last week. DexCom’s (DXCM) rival Abbott (ABT) obtained clearance from the FDA on Monday.
Apple (AAPL) rose more than 2% after Goldman Sachs initiated coverage of the iPhone maker with a buy rating.
Shares of Ciena (CIEN) rose after the company announced positive numbers in its latest earnings report.
