All 4 indexes had good gains last week, ranging from .93% for the Russell small caps to 1.37% for the S&P 500. The S&P 500 and the Dow both broke closing records, as strong economic data and bank earnings pointed to momentum in the U.S. pandemic recovery. The NASDAQ leads so far this month.
“World stocks extended a five-day run of fresh highs on Thursday, fueled by upbeat earnings and strong U.S. economic data that point to a solid recovery ahead, while Russian markets tumbled at the prospect of the harshest U.S. sanctions in years. A tumble in the 10-year U.S. Treasury note below 1.6% to yield 1.5496%, a fall of 8.6 basis points, helped spur renewed buying of big tech stocks and drive MSCI’s benchmark for global equity markets up 0.80% to fresh peaks.”
Volatility: The VIX fell 2.6% this week, ending at $16.25.
High Dividend Stocks: These high dividend stocks go ex-dividend next week: HRZN, SUNS, LITE, GLAD, GOOD), GAIN.
Market Breadth: 20 out of 30 DOW stocks rose this week, vs. 20 last week. 80% of the S&P 500 rose, vs. 77% last week.
FOREX: The US$ fell vs. most major currencies this week.
Economic News: “U.S. retail sales rebounded 9.8% in March, the largest increase since May 2020, in a gain that pushed the level of sales 17.1% above its pre-pandemic level to a record high, the Commerce Department said.
Separately, the Labor Department said initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell to a seasonally adjusted 576,000 for the week ended Apr. 10, the lowest level since mid-March 2020 and 124,000 below economists forecasts.” (Reuters)
“U.S. consumer prices climbed in March by the most in nearly 9 years as the end of pandemic lockdowns triggered a rebound in travel and commuting that pushed up the cost of gasoline, car rentals and hotel stays.
The consumer price index increased 0.6%from the prior month after a 0.4% gain in February. The jump in the cost of gas accounted for almost half the overall March advance. Excluding volatile food and energy components, the so-called core CPI increased 0.3% from February, the most in seven months. Costs of both goods and services rose last month.
The core measure rose 1.6% from 12 months ago. Prior to the pandemic, the annual core inflation metric was running north of 2%.” (Bloomberg)
Week Ahead Highlights: Q1 2021 earnings season heats up, with 9 DJIA stocks reporting, including PG, JNJ, VZ, INTC, among others. 13% of the S&P 500 will report, including JNJ, LMT, KO, ABT, NEE, and T. It’ll be a light data week, with some Housing-related reports due out.
Next Week’s US Economic Reports:
Sectors: The Utilities sector led this week, while the Communications Services sector lagged.
Futures: WTI Crude rose 6.44%, ending the week at $63.11.
“Oil prices held near a one-month high following the strong U.S. economic data and higher demand forecasts from the International Energy Agency on Thursday.” (Reuters)
