U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.23%
by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Oil & Gas, Basic Materials and Healthcare sectors led shares higher.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.23%, while the S&P 500index gained 1.43%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 1.74%.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 7.36% to 20.89.
The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were ChevronCorporation (NYSE:CVX), which rose 4.10% or 3.21 points to trade at 81.55 at the close. Meanwhile, Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) added 3.89% or 1.24 points to end at 33.08 and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) was up 2.46% or 1.82 points to 75.88 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ), which fell 0.28% or 0.12 points to trade at 42.84 at the close. JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) declined 0.28% or 0.17 points to end at 60.81 and Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO) was up 0.04% or 0.01 points to 25.74.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were Wynn Resorts Limited (NASDAQ:WYNN) which rose 22.73% to 63.47, Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) which was up 9.56% to settle at 25.91 and Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) which gained 9.43% to close at 7.89.
The worst performers were CME Group Inc (NASDAQ:CME) which was down 3.42% to 90.57 in late trade, The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) which lost 3.33% to settle at 27.60 and Realty Income Corporation (NYSE:O) which was down 2.85% to 46.00 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Medical Tra (NASDAQ:MTBC) which rose 60.65% to 1.99, Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) which was up 51.89% to settle at 0.81 and Spherix Incorporated (NASDAQ:SPEX) which gained 54.10% to close at 0.470.
The worst performers were Amicus Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:FOLD) which was down 53.53% to 6.39 in late trade, Tantech Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ:TANH) which lost 17.81% to settle at 10.38 and Horsehead Holding Corp (NASDAQ:ZINC) which was down 17.79% to 2.45 at the close.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2028 to 504 and 1 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1723 rose and 809 declined, while 45 ended unchanged.
Shares in Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) fell to 52-week lows; losing 0.28% or 0.12 to 42.84. Shares in Horsehead Holding Corp (NASDAQ:ZINC) fell to 5-year lows; losing 17.79% or 0.53 to 2.45.
Additional stock news from Reuters at Investing.com.
EUR/USD rose moderately on Friday extending gains from a recent hot streak, as a gloomy U.S. jobs report for September strengthened dovish arguments for a delayed rate by the Federal Reserve.
The currency pair traded in a brought range between 1.1150 and 1.1317 before settling at 1.1211, up 0.0016 or 0.14% on the session. At one point, the euro reached its highest level against the dollar since September 21. The euro has now closed higher against its American counterpart in seven of the last nine sessions. The euro ended the week against the dollar, though, virtually unchanged only gaining roughly 0.18% over the last five trading days.
EUR/USD likely gained support at 1.1088, the low from Sept. 4 and was met with resistance at 1.1460, the high from Sept. 18.
On Friday morning, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said non-farm payrolls for the month of September increased by 142,000, significantly below consensus estimates from analysts of a 203,000 gain. The figure also fell well below low end of estimates of a 180,000 increase. Severe declines in manufacturing and mining employment restrained overall job gains as the sectors lost 9,000 and 13,000 positions respectively. A month earlier, the manufacturing industry lost 18,000 jobs in August, while mining positions nationwide decreased by 22,000.
There were other signs of weakness within the dreary report. After surging by 0.3% on a monthly basis in August, hourly wages remained unchanged in September. Analysts expected hourly earnings to tick up on the month by 0.2%. On a yearly basis, hourly wages were only up 2.2% over the last 12 months. The labor participation rate also fell by 0.2% to 62.4%, providing indications that that the labor market is shrinking. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, held steady at 5.1% in line with analysts’ expectations.
The U-6 unemployment rate, a broader gauge of the employment situation in the U.S., fell 0.3% to 10.0%. The rate, which is a preferred measure of unemployment by Fed chair Janet Yellen, tracks the number of workers marginally attached to the labor force as well as part-time workers. Last September, the rate peaked at 11.7%. Marginally attached workers are defined as those who are not working or not looking for work, but have looked for work over the last 12 months.
Last month, the Federal Open Market Committee sent strong indications that it wanted to see continued improvement in the labor market before it hiked short-term interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade.
Yields on the U.S. 10-Year fell to an intraday low of 1.904%, dropping below 2% for the first time since late-August. At Friday’s close, yields on 10-year Treasuries stood at 1.993%, down roughly five basis points on the day.
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, fell more than 0.70% to an intraday low of 95.30, its lowest level in two weeks. One day earlier, the index reached as high as 96.64, its highest level in a month. The index closed on Friday at 96.05, down 0.31% for the session.
Speculators this week were slightly more bearish on the euro and the Canadian dollar. Bearishness fell slightly for the S&P 500, but remained very high. Bullishenss increased for gold.
Gold futures surged 2% on Friday, enjoying their strongest one-day move in more than a month, as a downbeat U.S. jobs report bolstered the case for a delayed interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for December delivery traded in a broad range between $1,103.80 and $1,140.90 an ounce before settling at $1,135.90, up $22.10 or 2.00% on the session. Gold fell to a three-week low in overnight trading, before staging a dramatic rally following the release of the lackluster job figures. Previously, the precious metal had closed in the red in four consecutive trading days, including two losing sessions of more than 1% earlier this week.
Gold likely gained support at $1,098.20, the low from September 11 and was met with resistance at $1,155.90, the high from Sept. 24.
On Friday morning, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said non-farm payrolls for the month of September increased by 142,000, significantly below consensus estimates from analysts of a 203,000 gain. ee additional discussion in section on Forex, above.
Last month, the Federal Open Market Committee sent strong indications that it wanted to see continued improvement in the labor market before it hiked short-term interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. Gold, which is not attached to interest rates or dividends, struggles to compete with high-yield bearing assets in periods of rising rates.
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, fell more than 0.70% to an intraday low of 95.30, its lowest level in two weeks. Dollar-denominated commodities such as gold become more expensive for foreign purchasers when the dollar appreciates.
Silver for December delivery jumped 0.699 or 4.82% to $15.210 an ounce.
Copper for December delivery gained 0.021 or 0.92% to 2.326 a pound.
U.S. crude futures rose considerably on Friday, as oil rigs nationwide fell sharply last week providing signals that the wide gulf in the domestic supply-demand balance might be narrowing.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for November delivery traded in a tight range between $44.00 and $45.80 a barrel, before closing at $45.55, up 0.81 or 1.81% on the day. For the week, Texas Long Sweet futures were virtually flat after opening on Monday just below $45.40 a barrel. Although the price for the front month of WTI future contracts has not reached $50 a barrel since mid-July, the November contract has only fallen by roughly 1% over the last month of trading.
On the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), brent crude for November delivery wavered between $46.94 and $48.50 a barrel, before settling at $48.17, up 0.48 or 1.01% on the session. After opening on Monday around $48.30 a barrel, brent futures fell less than 1% on the week. Meanwhile, the spread between the international and U.S. benchmarks of crude stood at $2.62, below Thursday’s level of $2.92 at the close of trading.
On Friday afternoon, oil services firm Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI) said in its weekly rig count that U.S. oil rigs fell by 26 to 614 for the week ending on Sept. 25. It marked the fifth straight weekly decline and the sharpest drop since the week ending on April 24. With last week’s decline, the number of rigs throughout the U.S. fell to the lowest total since August, 2010. Nearly a year ago at this time, the U.S. oil rig count peaked at 1,609.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Energy reported that crude inventories nationwide rose by 4.0 million barrels for the week ending on Sept. 25, significantly above analysts’ expectations of a 0.5 million draw. It halted a two week streak of draws of at least 1.9 million barrels. At 457.9 million barrels, U.S. crude inventories still remain near its highest level at this time of the year in at least 80 years.
Energy traders have kept a closer eye on a widening supply-demand imbalance since OPEC rattled global markets last November with its decision to keep its production ceiling unchanged above 30 million barrels per day. The tactic spurred an intense battle between Saudi Arabia and the U.S. for market share, pushing supply levels to record highs and sending crude prices crashing.
Elsewhere, a slew of hurricane models forecasted that Hurricane Joaquin will likely stay out at sea, sparing the Eastern coast of the U.S. from any major damage over the weekend. The storm, which battered the Bahamas on Thursday, had the potential to impact crude prices by disrupting a large number of barges carrying refined products.
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, fell more than 0.70% to an intraday low of 95.30, its lowest level in two weeks. One day earlier, the index reached as high as 96.64, its highest level in a month.
Dollar-denominated commodities such as crude become more expensive for foreign purchasers when the dollar appreciates.
Natural Gas (Thursday Report)
Natural gas futures eased back from five-month lows on Thursday after data showed that U.S. natural gas supplies increased less than expected last week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas for delivery in November was down 0.87% to $2.50 per million British thermal units. Prices were at around $2.47 prior to the release of the supply data.
In its weekly report the Energy Information Administration said natural gas storage in the week ended September 25 rose 98 billion cubic feet, compared to expectations for an increase of 100 bcf.
Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 3,538 bcf the EIA said. Stocks were 454 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 152 Bcf above the 5-year average of 3,386 Bcf.
EIA data shows that power plants account for approximately 32% of gas demand in the U.S. Demand for natural gas tends to fluctuate in the summer based on hot weather and air conditioning use.
Gas prices have come under pressure in recent weeks amid forecasts for milder weather and concern about oversupply.
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