outspoken reporter
U.S. stocks closed largely higher on Friday, helped by a rise in mega-cap technology stocks. Wall Street's benchmark index, the S&P 500 (SP500), concluded for the first time above the historical mark of 5,000 points.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (IND COMP.) advanced 1.25% to close at 15,990.66 points, winning six of the seven members of the “Magnificent 7” club. The SP (SP500) added 0.57% to settle at 5,026.55 points, after previously reaching a historical intraday and session high of 5,030.06 points.
The Dow Jones (dji) fell 0.14% to finish at 38,671.69 points. The blue-chip index came under some pressure due to a correction in Walt Disney (DIS), a day after the theme park and movie giant posted a nearly 12% gain following its quarterly results.
Of the 11 S&P sectors, eight finished in green, led by technology. Energy, Basic Consumption and Health Care were the three losers.
The S&P (SP500) also posted its fifth consecutive weekly gain, largely thanks to technology stocks. The rally in major tech names has largely been able to help traders offset concerns about massive valuations and the Federal Reserve's rejection of the market's aggressive interest rate cut expectations.
Even a continued decline in shares of New York Community Bank (NYCB), which has revived fears about the health of regional banks, does not appear to affect Wall Street's upward march.
“If the bull market from October 2022 to December 2023 caused consternation among right-thinking people around the world, the rodeo from December to the present is causing disbelief and denial. However, the bull market continues. Although there will always be pullbacks , we believe the bull market continues. “The odds of a true bullish breakout through the end of the year are increasing,” Alex King, investment group leader at Cestrian Capital Research, told Seeking Alpha.
On Friday, market participants received more encouraging inflation data after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics released its annual revisions to the consumer price index (CPI). The report showed that core consumer prices rose at an annualized rate of 3.3% in the fourth quarter of 2023, unchanged from the previous reading.
The CPI revisions are likely to give the Federal Reserve more breathing room while allaying any concerns traders may have had about the progress of inflation. The revisions also contrasted sharply with those of last year, in which the CPI was revised significantly upward.
In fact, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller last month in a speech specifically mentioned the revisions.
“One thing I will be watching closely is the scheduled CPI inflation reviews coming next month. Remember that a year ago, when it looked like inflation was falling rapidly, the annual seasonal factor update erased those gains,” Waller had said.
“Surprise! Waller had no idea how the CPI revisions would play out. Duh. In short, they're small and don't change the big picture at all,” Pantheon Macro's Ian Shepherdson said on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday.
One of the busiest stretches of the fourth-quarter earnings season also came to an end, with PepsiCo (PEP) being the top name reporting today. The snack and soft drink giant fell after issuing growth guidance for annual organic revenue and underlying earnings that fell short of estimates.
Take-Two Interactive Software (TTWO), the video game publisher behind titles like bioshock and Grand Theft Autowas another of the S&P's top percentage losers after reporting a drop in net bookings for its all-important holiday quarter.
Turning to fixed income markets, Treasury bond yields were mostly higher. The long-term 10-year yield (US10Y) rose slightly to 4.18%, while the more rate-sensitive short-term 2-year yield (US2Y) rose 3 basis points to 4.48%. .
See how Treasury yields have performed across the curve on the Seeking Alpha bond page.
