Better-than-expected retail sales brought sinking stocks back to life on Friday
Stocks roared back to life after a dismal week of losses for the major indexes. The Dow added an impressive 658 points, snapping its five-day losing streak. The S&P also snapped a five-day streak with a notable daily gain, while the Nasdaq settled with a more than 1% win. This morning's upbeat retail sales data for June injected some much-needed optimism into Wall Street, and allayed some concerns that the Federal Reserve could deliver a full point interest rate hike at the end of the month. A few promising earnings reports out of the bank sector from Wells Fargo (WFC) and Citigroup (C) also boosted sentiment. Despite today's strong performance, however, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 still logged weekly drops.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Behind PNC Financial Services mixed quarterly report.
- 7 pot stocks that set headlines ablaze this week.
- Plus, weighing in on CRM; QCOM gets a bull note; and what to know about UNH after earnings.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 31,288.26) added 658.1 points, or 2.2% for the day and 0.2% for the week. UnitedHealth (UNH) led the gainers, adding 5.4%. Procter & Gamble (PG) was the single loser, shedding 0.1%.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,863.16) rose 72.8 points, or 1.9% for the day. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 11,452.42) added 201.2 points, or 1.8% for the session. The former lost 0.9% this week, while the latter shed 1.6%.
Lastly, the Cboe Market Volatility Index (VIX - 24.23) lost 2.2 points, or 8.2% for the day, and 1.6% for the week, logging its fourth-consecutive weekly loss.
5 Things to Know Today
- President Joe Biden was seen fist bumping Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman -- who was blamed by the CIA as the driving catalyst behind the 2018 murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey -- just before a meeting that Biden earlier said would never happen.(CNBC)
- While the chance of Republicans winning the November midterm election are widely expected amid American's frustration with inflation and surging gas prices, the chance of the party reclaiming control of the Senate has felled to 63% from 80%, according to data from betting market PredictIt. (MarketWatch)
- Is now the time to jump in on sinking Salesforce stock?
- What sent shares of Qualcomm higher on Friday.
- Breaking down this blue chip's beat-and-raise.
Gold Falls for 5th Week in a Row
Oil prices rose today after reports emerged stating that U.S. officials were understating President Joe Biden's expectations that Riyadh would immediately increase its crude output during a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bid Salman and other Saudi lawmakers. August-dated crude added $1.81, or 1.9%, to finish at $97.59 per barrel for the day, though it dropped 6.9% for the week.
Gold prices hit their lowest level in 20 months on Friday, briefly dipping below the $1,700 level and logging a fifth-straight weekly drop. In addition to the usual catalysts weighing on the precious metal, UBS said it now expects gold to fall all the way to $1,600 by the end of this year, before making a muted recovery in 2023. August-dated gold lost $2.20, or 0.1%, to close at $1,703.60 an ounce. For the week, it shed 2.2%.