The Dow suffered a 30-point drop
It was another quiet day for markets, with all three major indexes clinging close to breakeven most of the day. The Dow and S&P 500 both dragged on the dance of trading just below their record peaks as well, with the former ending the day down 30 points. The Nasdaq saw the most substantial wins, brushing off news that multiple global websites were experiencing outages earlier in the day.
Airline and reopening names helped prop up the market today, amid news that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has eased travel recommendations for 61 countries. Meanwhile, the increasingly wild trading surrounding a number of Reddit-targeted names is still on investors' radars, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said yesterday that it's keeping a close eye on said volatility.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- The lending name that landed 2 fresh analysts notes today.
- Top 12 "meme" stocks that should be on your radar.
- Plus, MRVL looks good for Q2; FSLY makes swift recovery; and the post-earnings buzz surrounding COUP.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 34,599.82) fell 30.4 points, or 0.1% for the day. Chevron (CVX) led the Dow components with a 0.9% rise, while Procter & Gamble (PG) paced the laggards, falling 1.2%.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index (SPX - 4,227.3) added 0.7 points, or 0.02% for the day. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 13,924.91) rose 43.2 points, or 0.3% for the day.
Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 17.07) added 0.7 point, or nearly 4%.
- Health officials are urging more Americans to get vaccinated against Covid-19 in order to keep the Delta variant, which was first identified in India, from spreading further in the United States. (CNBC)
- The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said it was launching a probe into how tax returns from billionaires such as Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, which showed they did not owe income taxes, were initially leaked. (MarketWatch)
- This semiconductor name is eyeing even more growth in Q2.
- The equity making a quick recovery from yesterday's internet outage drama.
- Behind Coupa Software stock's post-earnings buzz.
Oil Grabs Highest Settlement Since October 2018
Oil prices rose to their highest level in over two years, rising above the $70 level for the first time since October 2018. Boosting prices was a report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), which hiked its 2021 West Texas Intermediate crude price up 5% from its May forecast to $61.85 a barrel. Plus, looking ahead, analysts are expecting a third-straight weekly decline of 4.1 million barrels in crude inventories ahead of tomorrow's EIA report. July-dated crude added 82 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $70.05 per barrel.
Gold prices briefly topped $1,900 on Tuesday, before pulling back and snapping their three-day win streak. The dollar hardened slightly, putting pressure on the precious metal, while anxieties over inflation also weighed. August-dated gold dropped $4.40, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,894.40 an ounce for the day.