Tech Shares Push Stocks Higher; Crude Oil Falls: Markets Wrap

Follow the latest updates from global equity, commodity, and currency markets.

01 Apr 2021, 03:45 AM IST

Tech Shares Push Stocks Higher; Crude Oil Falls: Markets Wrap

A man watches a screen displaying stock prices inside the Yangon Stock Exchange. (Photograph: Taylor Weidman/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Technology shares led U.S. stocks higher, regaining favor on the last day of a quarter where they trailed the rest of the major market sectors, with President Joe Biden set to unveil his next stimulus plan.

Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Tesla Inc. pushed the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 up 1.5%, while the Dow Jones Industrial finished lower with investors favoring growth over value shares again. The benchmark S&P 500 set an intra-day high, retreating from a record closing level in the last moments of trading. Oil fell after an OPEC+ panel meeting ended without an oil policy recommendation. The dollar weakened, but still posted its best quarter in a year. The Bloomberg Commodity Index and developing-nation currencies climbed.

“The message is pretty clear that he intends to go big,” said Shawn Snyder, head of investment strategy at Citi Personal Wealth Management. “It’s really really huge fiscal tailwinds.”

Data for March showed U.S. private employers added the most jobs in six months, adding to evidence that the vaccine drive and business reopenings are encouraging hiring.

Investors, rattled this week by the meltdown at Bill Hwang’s Archegos Capital Management, are turning their attention to growth and inflation as volatility spurred by the forced sales subsides. While Europe’s struggle with inoculations and the resurgence of the coronavirus have tempered growth expectations, the U.S. vaccine rollout is surpassing targets.

“We continue to be in this rotational kind of market and in particular some of what had been -- to use a supermarket term -- the hot pockets of speculative excess,” said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab. “But it obviously has not taken the market down with it more broadly, nor did the spectacle of Archegos do that either, so there’s clearly still resilience in the market.”

The fallout from the Archegos liquidation continued to play out. Discovery Inc.’s Class B shares surged as much as 115% before paring some gains and triggering several volatility halts. The gain far outpaced the advance in Class A shares, which trade with significantly more daily volume.

Ten-year Treasury yields rose for the fourth time in five days, trading near a 14-month high. Gold steadied after a two-day slump. West Texas Intermediate crude slipped after a gathering among producers ended without any recommendations on output, according to delegates.

Some key events to watch this week:

OPEC+ meets to discuss production levels for May on Thursday.
China Caixin PMI due Thursday.
U.S. employment report for March on Friday.
Good Friday starts the Easter weekend in countries including the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Australia and Canada.

These are some of the main moves in financial markets:

Stocks

The S&P 500 Index increased 0.4% to 3,972.90 as of 4:06 p.m. New York time.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 0.3% to 32,981.55.

The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.5% to 13,246.87, the highest in more than a week on the largest climb in almost three weeks.

The Nasdaq 100 Index gained 1.5% to 13,091.44, the highest in almost two weeks.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.2% to 429.60, the largest fall in more than a week.

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index decreased 0.2% to 1,152.21.

The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1726.

The British pound increased 0.3% to $1.3782.

The Japanese yen depreciated 0.3% to 110.74 per dollar, hitting the weakest in about a year with its sixth straight decline.

Bonds

The yield on two-year Treasuries gained one basis point to 0.16%, the highest in three weeks on the biggest rise in more than a week.

The yield on 10-year Treasuries gained three basis points to 1.74%, the highest in about 14 months.

The yield on 30-year Treasuries jumped four basis points to 2.41%.

Britain’s 10-year yield increased two basis points to 0.845%, the highest in more than a week.

Germany’s 10-year yield fell one basis point to -0.29%.

Commodities

West Texas Intermediate crude decreased 2% to $59.36 a barrel.

Gold strengthened 1.3% to $1,707.49 an ounce, the biggest increase in three weeks.