Written by Investing.com Staff, Investing.com
U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.28%
U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Oil & Gas, Financials and Industrials sectors led shares higher.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.28%, while the S&P 500 index added 0.58%, and the NASDAQ Composite index climbed 0.48%.
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The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM), which rose 2.71% or 2.95 points to trade at 111.79 at the close. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) added 2.61% or 5.21 points to end at 204.53 and Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) was up 1.08% or 0.82 points to 76.64 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Dow Inc (NYSE:DOW), which fell 3.22% or 1.64 points to trade at 49.27 at the close. Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO) declined 1.79% or 1.00 points to end at 54.73 and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) was down 1.14% or 1.60 points to 139.09.
The top performers on the S&P 500 were EQT Corporation (NYSE:EQT) which rose 9.70% to 15.83, Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) which was up 6.73% to settle at 47.55 and Brighthouse Financial Inc (NASDAQ:BHF) which gained 4.74% to close at 36.69.
The worst performers were Pacific Gas & Electric Co (NYSE:PCG) which was down 4.34% to 22.91 in late trade, Dow Inc (NYSE:DOW) which lost 3.22% to settle at 49.27 and Patterson Companies Inc (NASDAQ:PDCO) which was down 3.17% to 22.90 at the close.
The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:CDMO) which rose 40.00% to 5.6000, Hong Kong Highpower Technology (NASDAQ:HPJ) which was up 39.02% to settle at 4.240 and Northeast Bancorp(NASDAQ:NBN) which gained 36.40% to close at 27.58.
The worst performers were Hutchison China MediTech Ltd (NASDAQ:HCM) which was down 27.15% to 22.00 in late trade, Oasmia Pharmaceutical AB(NASDAQ:OASM) which lost 26.16% to settle at 0.990 and SSLJ.com Ltd (NASDAQ:YGTY) which was down 25.00% to 1.2600 at the close.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2176 to 842 and 21 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1937 rose and 744 declined, while 76 ended unchanged.
Shares in Hong Kong Highpower Technology (NASDAQ:HPJ) rose to 52-week highs; gaining 39.02% or 1.190 to 4.240. Shares in Oasmia Pharmaceutical AB (NASDAQ:OASM) fell to 52-week lows; losing 26.16% or 0.350 to 0.990. Shares in Northeast Bancorp (NASDAQ:NBN) rose to 52-week highs; rising 36.40% or 7.36 to 27.58. Shares in SSLJ.com Ltd (NASDAQ:YGTY) fell to all time lows; losing 25.00% or 0.4200 to 1.2600.
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 4.68% to 15.08.
Gold Futures for August delivery was up 0.04% or 0.50 to $1412.50 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in August fell 2.07% or 1.23 to hit $58.20 a barrel, while the September Brent oil contract fell 1.95% or 1.28 to trade at $64.39 a barrel.
EUR/USD was up 0.02% to 1.1370, while USD/JPY rose 0.12% to 107.91.
The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.01% at 95.730.
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Canada stocks higher at close of trade; S&P/TSX Composite up 0.46%
U.K. stocks higher at close of trade; Investing.com United Kingdom 100 up 0.34%
StockBeat – Banks Climb After Fed Signs off on Dividend, Buyback Plans
The U.S. dollar was slightly lower on Friday as investors waited for news from the G20 summit, while inflation data supported the Federal Reserve’s patient approach to interest rates.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, rose 0.1% to 95.790 by 11:11 AM ET (15:11 GMT).
Core inflation data rose in May, according to the Commerce Department. The data support the central bank taking a cautious approach to cutting rates, despite expectations among investors and pressure from President Donald Trump.
The chances of a rate cut at the Fed’s next meeting in July are still priced in at 100% according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
Meanwhile, the dollar was mostly flat against the safe-haven Japanese yen, with USD/JPY falling 3 cents to 107.73, as trade talks were in focus.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Trump are expected to meet at 11:30 AM (2:30 GMT) local time in Osaka on Saturday (10:30 PM ET on Friday). The meeting is expected to give clarity on whether or not a trade deal can be made between the two largest economies in the world.
Elsewhere, the euro rose with EUR/USD up 0.1% to 1.1381, while GBP/USD gained 0.3% to 1.2710 and USD/CAD was flat at 1.3093 .
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Gold prices were flat on Friday, but ended the month with their biggest monthly gain since June 2016 amid increasing geopolitical tensions and hopes the Federal Reserve will deliver an interest-rate cut as soon as July.
XAU/USD was up 0.33% at $1,410.29 by 3:05 PM ET (8:05 PM GMT), while gold futures for August delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange settled 0.1% higher to $1,413.79 a troy ounce.
Data showing U.S. consumer spending, the backbone of the economy, remained solid and core PCE inflation had steadied did little to knock expectations for a Fed rate cut, keeping the gold bugs firmly in control.
According to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor, 100% of traders expect the Fed to cut rates in July.
The August gold contract finished the month up 7.8%, the largest monthly gain since June 2016. ANZ Research said in a note earlier this week:
“Gold has benefitted from its safe-haven status amid (a) deteriorating macroeconomic outlook.”
The firm expects gold prices to settle above $1,400 an ounce, with a “reasonable chance” of breaking $1,500 an ounce over the next 12 months. ANZ Research added:
“We believe it will remain a highly relevant portfolio diversifier, as investors seek protection from growing uncertainties around global economic growth and rising geopolitical risks.”
The diversification benefit of gold was underscored by data from fund-tracker EPFR showing investors were throwing caution to the wind and betting big on the yellow metal.
Mutual funds that invest in commodities sucked in $1.5 billion in the week ended Wednesday, according to fund-tracker EPFR, with two-thirds of the total sum, $1 billion, in dedicated gold funds, which recorded their biggest inflows since mid-2017.
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Crude futures fell on Friday, but were on track to notch a second-straight weekly gain ahead of this weekend’s G-20 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping and the OPEC powwow early next week.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for August delivery settled 1.6% lower at $58.47, while on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, the August contract for Brent, the global benchmark, slipped 0.30% to $65.50. The more active September contract was down 1.6% to $64.52.
With expectations running high that OPEC and its allies are likely to extend oil production cuts for another six months and discuss deepening the curbs at a meeting next week, the G20 meeting between Trump and Xi has taken on increased scrutiny.
Analysts, however, have warned that a negative outcome from the Trump-Xi sitdown could fan trade tensions between the world’s largest two economies and trigger a rocky reaction in oil prices.
An escalation in hostilities between the U.S. and China at the G20 would be bad for oil prices, said Martijn Rats, a strategist at Morgan Stanley.
The global economy would take a further knock if Trump imposes tariffs on the $300 billion worth of Chinese goods that are currently not subject to levies.
Oil prices look set to end the week more than 3% higher thanks to surge earlier in this week when the Energy Information Administration revealed a larger-than-expected draw in domestic supplies.
Over the longer term, the swashbuckling gains in oil prices seen in June, up more than 10%, are unlikely to continue amid a glut in supply. Rats said:
“It’s simply a case that we have an awful lot of oil.”
Non-OPEC countries alone are likely to increase production by 2 million barrels a day this year, he estimates, more than offsetting global demand growth of about 1 million barrels a day.
Production, which continues to flirt with record highs, showed little sign of tailing off as rig counts remain steady.
A report by U.S. energy services firm Baker Hughes showed U.S. oil-rig counts were unchanged at 963 in the latest week.
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Natural Gas
No report this week.
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