Written by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
U.S. stocks mixed at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.29%
U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Friday, as gains in the Healthcare, Technology and Consumer Goods sectors led shares higher while losses in the Utilities, Basic Materials and Industrials sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.29%, while the S&P 500 index climbed 0.51%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 1.08%.
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The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), which rose 2.38% or 1.14 points to trade at 48.98 at the close. Meanwhile, Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK) added 1.23% or 0.66 points to end at 54.36 and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) was up 1.21% or 1.54 points to 128.82 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD), which fell 4.77% or 7.43 points to trade at 148.27 at the close. Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) declined 2.56% or 3.85 points to end at 146.38 and Boeing Co(NYSE:BA) was down 1.44% or 5.02 points to 344.67.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were Gap Inc (NYSE:GPS) which rose 7.82% to 34.18, Universal Health Services Inc (NYSE:UHS) which was up 6.74% to settle at 123.84 and Range Resources Corporation (NYSE:RRC) which gained 6.39% to close at 14.65.
The worst performers were Foot Locker Inc (NYSE:FL) which was down 12.73% to 40.04 in late trade, McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) which lost 4.77% to settle at 148.27 and Ulta Beauty Inc (NASDAQ:ULTA) which was down 3.34% to 194.00 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Innovate Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:INNT) which rose 54.15% to 9.48, Zosano Pharma Corp(NASDAQ:ZSAN) which was up 39.38% to settle at 7.610 and Auris Medical Holding AG (NASDAQ:EARS) which gained 26.49% to close at 0.316.
The worst performers were Atlas Financial Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:AFH) which was down 40.96% to 11.100 in late trade, Aytu BioScience Inc (NASDAQ:AYTU) which lost 28.96% to settle at 0.3950 and Tenax Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:TENX) which was down 27.36% to 7.700 at the close.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1941 to 1112 and 139 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1959 rose and 605 declined, while 102 ended unchanged.
Shares in Innovate Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:INNT) rose to all time highs; rising 54.15% or 3.33 to 9.48. Shares in Atlas Financial Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:AFH) fell to 3-years lows; down 40.96% or 7.700 to 11.100. Shares in Aytu BioScience Inc (NASDAQ:AYTU) fell to all time lows; down 28.96% or 0.1610 to 0.3950.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 12.86% to 19.58.
Gold Futures for April delivery was up 1.36% or 17.80 to $1323.00 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in April rose 0.71% or 0.43 to hit $61.42 a barrel, while the May Brent oil contract rose 1.05% or 0.67 to trade at $64.50 a barrel.
EUR/USD was up 0.51% to 1.2326, while USD/JPY fell 0.46% to 105.73.
The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.32% at 89.93.
See also:
Mexico stocks lower at close of trade; S&P/BMV IPC down 0.11%
Canada stocks lower at close of trade; S&P/TSX Composite down 0.01%
Europe sheds about 5% for the week (Seeking Alpha)
Weekly ETF Gainers / Losers (Seeking Alpha)
The dollar fell against a major basket of currencies as President Donald Trump’s proposal to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports raised the prospect of a global trade war that could halt US economic growth.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell 0.29% to 89.96.
Trump said Thursday, the US will impose a 25% tariff on steel imports and 10% tariff on aluminium. The highly controversial move raised fears that the U.S.’s main trading partners including China could take countermeasures, triggering a global trade war.
The EU has been quick to retaliate as Reuters reported that the trading bloc is considering setting duties on about $3.5 billion of U.S. imports if the United States proceeds with Trump’s tariff proposals.
Fearing the break out of a global trade war, traders piled into safe-haven currencies like the yen and Swiss franc, adding to downward momentum in the greenback.
USD/JPY fell 0.69% to Y105.49, while the USD/CHF to 0.9372. Demand usually rises for the yen and the Swissy in times of geopolitical tension or market turbulence because both countries have large current account surpluses.
Much move higher in the yen, however, came overnight as Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the central bank would consider exiting from ultra-loose monetary policy measures by 2019 as there was a high probability that inflation would hit the bank’s target.
The pound failed to capitalize on dollar weakness amid Brexit-related woes after UK Prime Minister Theresa May conceded that Brexit will reduce the UK’s access to the single market, reducing the chances of a so-called soft Brexit.
Action Economics said May’s speech was notable for the fact that she finally admitted that the UK will have less access to the single market, implying that a “soft” Norway or Swiss-like deal is off the cards.
EUR/USD rose 0.45% to $1.2319 while USD/CAD rose 0.54% to C$1.2906.
This week speculators became more bullish on the euro, pound sterling and crude oil; less bullish on the S&P 500 and gold; and less bearish on the yen.
Note: The data is for the week ending on Tuesday 27 February so the last three days of trading are not reflected.
Gold prices rose sharply supported by a slump in the dollar as fears of a potential global trade war mounted, adding to safe-haven demand, following President Donald Trump’s proposal to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.
Gold futures for April delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by $18.70, or 1.43%, to $1,323.80 a troy ounce.
Trump said Thursday the US will impose a 25% tariff on steel imports and 10% tariff on aluminium. The U.S.’s main trading hit back as the EU was said to be considering setting duties on about $3.5 billion of U.S. imports on iconic U.S. brands including Harley Davidson, Bourbon, Blue Jeans.
That helped extend the flight-to-safety trade seen Thursday, as well-known safe havens like the yen and gold remained well supported.
Dollar-denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar – A fall in the dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency and thus, increases demand for the precious metal.
Despite the sharp upswing, gold prices were set to post their second-straight weekly loss as the yellow metal struggled to claw back losses sustained earlier this week which followed Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s hawkish comments.
In other precious metal trade, silver futures rose 1.50% to $16.52 a troy ounce, while platinum futures rose 0.97% to $967.10 an ounce.
Copper rose 1.59% to $3.13, while natural gas fell 0.07% to $2.70.
Crude oil prices snapped a two-week winning streak despite settling higher on Friday, as fears over rising U.S. oil output persisted after data showed the number of oil rigs rose to their highest in nearly three years.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for April delivery rose 26 cents to settle at $63.25 a barrel, while on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, Brent gained 45 cents to trade at $64.28 a barrel.
The number of oil rigs operating in the US rose by one to 800, the highest level since April 2, 2015, according to data from energy services firm Baker Hughes.
That added to concerns that U.S. crude production may curtail major oil producers’ efforts to drain excess supply in the industry, as oil rig data often serves as an indicator of future production and demand.
Much of rebound in oil prices seen Friday was said to be on dollar weakness, while the underlying sentiment on oil prices remained bearish as Energy Information Administration (EIA) data Wednesday showed U.S. stockpiles of crude continued to build for the second-straight week.
Inventories of U.S. crude rose by 3.019 million barrels for the week ended Feb. 23, exceeding expectations for a rise of 2.4 million barrels. Gasoline inventories – one of the products that crude is refined into – rose by 2.483 million barrels, confounding expectations for a decline of 190,000 barrels.
Also adding to negative sentiment was an ongoing uptick in U.S. crude production to 10.3 million barrels per day. That strengthened the U.S.’s position as the world’s second largest oil producer, as it closes in on leader Russia, fuelling investor fears that rebalancing in oil markets could face headwinds.
Money managers have turned bearish on oil prices, reducing their WTI net-long position – the difference between bets on a price increase and wagers on a drop – for a second week in the period ended Feb. 23, according to U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.
Natural Gas (FX Empire)
Natural gas prices continue to remain stable hovering near support levels as it consolidates its losses over the last 4-weeks. Inventories remain near the bottom of the 5-year range, but production is steady, and demand is stable. There are few catalyst that would drive prices much higher, unless there is a supply disruption. The only demand increases that have been seen are the increases in exports of LGN, which should continue to rise as global demand for natural gas increases.
Technicals
Natural gas prices moved higher and continue to hover above support near the 10-day moving average at 2.65. Resistance is seen near the 50-day moving average at 2.88. Momentum has turned positive as the MACD (moving average convergence divergence) index generated a crossover buy signal. This occurs as the MACD line (the 12-day moving average minus the 26-day moving average) crosses above the MACD signal line (the 9-day moving average of the MACD line). The RSI is moving sideways and is choppy which reflects a consolidation period.
Supply rises slightly
According to data from the EIA, the average total supply of natural gas rose by 1% compared with the previous report week. Similarly, dry natural gas production grew by 1% compared with the previous report week. The trade press has noted that record production in recent weeks may be having a moderating effect on prices. Average net imports from Canada increased by 4% from last week.
Demand remains flat
The EIA reports that total U.S. consumption of natural gas was unchanged from the previous report week, averaging 75.0 Bcf per day. Natural gas consumed for power generation climbed by 4% week over week. Industrial sector consumption stayed constant, averaging 21.8 Bcf per day. In the residential and commercial sectors, consumption declined by 2%. Natural gas exports to Mexico increased by 1%.
U.S. liquefied natural gas exports increased
U.S. liquefied natural gas exports increase week over week. Five LNG vessels departed the Sabine Pass liquefaction facility from February 22 to February 28.
