Tag Archives: Dow Jones

World stocks reach new peak in world full of surprises

Traders work in front of the German share price index, DAX board, at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, August 4, 2017.

By John Geddie

LONDON (Reuters) – World stocks breached record highs on Monday as better-than-expected company earnings and economic data from the United States stole the focus from rising geopolitical tension over North Korea’s nuclear program.

The U.S. dollar  dipped slightly but held on to most of Friday’s gains – its biggest daily rise this year – made after data showed the United States created more jobs than forecast last month.

For those watching second quarter corporate results in recent weeks, there have been many such surprises. Of the nearly 1000 companies in the MSCI world index that have reported, 67 percent have beaten expectations, according to Reuters data.

These two factors helped nudge the flagship share index above a peak breached late last month, setting a new all-time high of 480.09 on Monday.

The Dow Jones, which recorded its eighth consecutive record high on Friday, was set to open up slightly on Monday.

“Global equities remain the preferred asset class for investors and this can be clearly seen in the new highs hit by world indices today,” said Edward Park, investment director at Brooks Macdonald.

“Whilst the headline beat in non-farm payrolls was the primary positive for the market … equity prices are supported by a strong earnings season and relatively low event risk over the next few months.”

Aside from a slight weakening in the Korean won, there was little financial market reaction to the news over the weekend that the U.N. Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea aimed at pressuring Pyongyang to end its nuclear program.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, agreed in a telephone call on Monday to apply maximum pressure and sanctions on North Korea, while China expressed hope that North and South Korea could resume contact soon.

Yields on U.S. and German government bonds – seen as a safe haven in times of stress – held above one-month lows hit at the tail end of last week.

 

ASIAN GAINS

A strong rise in U.S. and Asian stocks propelled the world index to a new high, with the strength of the euro providing a bit of a headache for European markets.

Earlier in Asian trading, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.5 percent while Japan’s Nikkei added 0.5 percent.

Chinese blue chips were bolstered by data showing the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose twice as much as expected in July.

A dramatic reduction in capital outflows – which are seen as one of China’s biggest risks – has helped boost confidence in the world’s second largest economy ahead of a key political leadership reshuffle in coming months.

The euro zone’s main stock index edged lower, however, as the single currency headed back towards 20-month high, a trend which appears to be denting profitability in certain sectors.

Of the MSCI Europe companies having reported, 61 percent have either met or beat expectations. But focusing on industrial firms – of which many depend on exports, and are sensitive to a stronger euro – the beat ratio is just 37 percent.

“The euro is likely to have an impact in the third quarter, with a 10 percent appreciation of the euro lowering earnings per share by around 5 percent,” said Valentin Bissat, senior strategist at Mirabaud Asset Management.

DOLLAR DOUBTS

The upbeat U.S. jobs data offers policymakers some assurance that inflation will gradually rise to the central bank’s 2 percent target, and likely clear the way for a plan to start shrinking its massive bond portfolio later this year.

But market pricing shows investors are still about evenly divided over whether the Fed will also opt to raise rates again in December.

For some analysts, Monday’s pull back in the dollar backs some views in markets that Friday’s rally may not have legs.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six global peers, inched back 0.2 percent to 93.361. It rallied 0.76 percent on Friday, its biggest one-day gain this year.

The dollar slipped 0.2 percent against the euro to $1.1796 per euro, after surging 0.8 percent on Friday.

“The most logical view here is the moves on Friday were clearly just a sizeable covering of USD shorts, from what was one of the biggest net short positions held against the USD for many years,” Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG in Melbourne, wrote in a note.

For the dollar rally to gain momentum, the market needs to change its interest rate pricing, Weston added.

In commodities, oil prices slid back from nine-week highs hit on Aug. 4 as worries lingered over high production from OPEC and the United States.

Global benchmark Brent crude futures were down 60 cents, or 1.14 percent, at $51.82 a barrel. They traded as low as $51.56 a barrel earlier in the day.

Gold  steadied as the dollar surrendered some of its gains, but remained under pressure. The precious metal was marginally lower at $1,257.41 an ounce, extending Friday’s 0.8 percent loss.

 

(Reporting by John Geddie in London and Nichola Saminather in Singapore Additional reporting by Helen Reid in London; Editing by Richard Balmforth)

 

U.S. stocks open higher after strong private jobs data

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 31, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan

By Sweta Singh

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks were higher on Thursday after better-than-expected private sector hiring showed that the labor market continues to strengthen, further boosting chances of a rate hike by the Federal Reserve later this month.

The ADP private sector employment report showed that 253,000 jobs were added in May, well above the 185,000 jobs estimated by economists polled by Reuters.

The report by payrolls processor ADP acts as a precursor to the much-awaited nonfarm payrolls data, due on Friday, that includes hiring in both the public and private sectors.

“I think the Fed has already made up its mind. Unless we have a real weak employment data tomorrow I think it’s a go-ahead for the Fed to raise rates in June,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial in New York.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams said on Wednesday he sees a total of three interest rate increases for this year as his baseline scenario, but views four hikes as also being appropriate if the U.S. economy gets an unexpected boost.

Forecasts from Fed officials suggest that a median of two more hikes are planned before the end of the year.

Traders priced in an 89 percent chance of a rate hike in the upcoming Fed meeting on June 14, according to Thomson Reuters data.

At 9:52 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 21.5 points, or 0.1 percent, at 21,030.15, the S&P 500 was up 6.16 points, or 0.25 percent, at 2,417.96 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 26.51 points, or 0.43 percent, at 6,225.03.    Seven of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors were higher, with the health and technology sectors leading the gainers.

The Institute for Supply Management is likely to report that its national manufacturing index slipped to 54.5 in May from 54.8 in April. The data is expected at 10:00 ET.

“We have a multitude of macro news coming out today and that will set the tone for the market’s direction … I think we are looking at another trying session,” Cardillo said.

Deere’s shares were up 1.9 percent at $124.74 after the farm and construction major said it would buy privately held German road construction company Wirtgen Group for $5.2 billion, including debt.

Goodyear Tire’s shares were up 5.7 percent at $34.03 after Morgan Stanley raised its rating to “overweight” from “underweight”.

Box Inc was up 3.9 percent at $19.40 after the cloud storage firm’s quarterly earnings edged ahead of Wall Street analysts’ expectations.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 1,931 to 657. On the Nasdaq, 1,707 issues rose and 624 fell.

The S&P 500 index showed 28 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 82 new highs and 70 new lows.

(Reporting by Sweta Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Anil D’Silva)

Wall Street sinks on fears of delays to Trump tax cuts

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) shortly after the opening bell in New York, U.S., March 21, 2017. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

By Noel Randewich

(Reuters) – Wall Street fell sharply on Tuesday as investors worried that President Donald Trump will struggle to deliver promised tax cuts that propelled the market to record highs in recent months, with nervousness deepening ahead of a key healthcare vote.

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 1 percent in their worst one-day performances since before Trump’s election victory in November.

The S&P financial index <.SPSY> sank 2.87 percent, its biggest daily fall since June. That added to losses in the sector since the Federal Reserve last week raised interest rates by 25 basis points and signaled it would remain on a gradual pace of hikes, a less aggressive stance than some investors expected.

Banks benefit from higher interest rates and their stocks are sensitive to changes in expectations of how quickly the Fed will adjust rates. Bank of America <BAC.N> slumped 5.77 percent, the biggest drag on the S&P 500, while a 3.72-percent drop in Goldman Sachs <GS.N> pulled the Dow lower.

“There was a feeling the Fed was going to possibly be more hawkish last week. That didn’t happen,” said Mark Kepner, managing director at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. “That takes a little out of the higher rates that the banks want.”

Republican party leaders aim to move controversial healthcare legislation to the House floor for debate as early as Thursday. But they can only afford to lose about 20 votes from Republican ranks, or risk the bill failing, since minority Democrats are united against it.

With valuations stretched, investors see the Trump administration’s struggles to push through the healthcare overhaul as a sign he may also face setbacks delivering promised corporate tax cuts. Expectations of those tax cuts are a major reason for the 10-percent surge in the S&P 500 since Trump’s election.

“The market is starting to get a little fed up with the lack of progress in healthcare because everything else is being put on the back burner,” said RJ Grant, head of trading at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in New York.

The Russell 2000 <.RUT> index of smallcap stocks fell 2.71 percent, its worst day since September.

The financial sector has been the best performing of the 11 major S&P sectors since Trump’s election, surging 18 percent on his proposals to cut bank regulations and reduce taxes.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average <.DJI> dropped 1.14 percent to end at 20,668.01 points, while the S&P 500 <.SPX> lost 1.24 percent to 2,344.02.

The Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> fell 1.83 percent to 5,793.83.

The CBOE Volatility index <.VIX>, Wall Street’s “fear gauge”, jumped 10 percent.

Under Trump, Wall Street has become unaccustomed to steep selloffs. The last time the S&P 500 lost 1 percent or more in a day was 110 trading sessions ago on October 11. Over the past two years, the S&P 500 has suffered losses of 1-percent or more about once every 11 sessions, according to Thomson Reuters data.

But investors have grown worried about elevated valuations. The S&P 500 is trading at about 18 times forward earnings estimates against the long-term average of 15, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Shares of FedEx Corp <FDX.N> dropped 3 percent in extended trade after the delivery company’s quarterly report disappointed investors.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 3.92-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 5.25-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 27 new 52-week highs and 7 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 78 new highs and 79 new lows.

About 8.3 billion shares changed hands in U.S. exchanges, compared with the 7.1 billion daily average over the last 20 sessions.

(Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak and Sinead Carew in New York, editing by Nick Zieminski)

Dow hits 12th record high close; Trump talks up infrastructure spending

Leaf Group CEO Sean Moriarty (4th L) stands amongst Leaf Group management and board members for the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in Manhattan, New York City, U.S.

By Caroline Valetkevitch

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks ended slightly higher on Monday and the Dow closed at a record high for a 12th straight session, as President Donald Trump said he would make a “big” infrastructure statement on Tuesday.

The Dow’s streak of record-high closes matches a 12-day run in 1987, with Boeing and UnitedHealth among the biggest boosts for the Dow on Monday. The S&P 500 also closed at a record high. Energy gave the biggest boost to the S&P 500, with the energy index up 0.9 percent.

Trump, who met with state governors at the White House, also said he is seeking what he called a “historic” increase in military spending of more than 9 percent, while he said his administration would be “moving quickly” on regulatory reforms.

The comments came ahead of Trump’s first address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday evening. Investors are looking for more specifics on Trump’s plans, given the hefty gains in the market since the Nov. 8 election.

“Things are moving along in terms of the Trump agenda, but we’ll get a clearer picture after tomorrow night so that might precipitate some buying or selling,” said Bucky Hellwig, senior vice president at BB&amp;T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.

Hellwig and others said there’s potentially more upside than downside from the address, given how the market has reacted in recent weeks.

Shares of U.S. defense companies – Boeing, Raytheon, General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin – rose after Trump said he would seek to boost Pentagon spending by $54 billion in his first budget proposal.

Boeing was up 1.1 percent while UnitedHealth was up 1.4 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 15.68 points, or 0.08 percent, to close at 20,837.44, the S&P 500 gained 2.39 points, or 0.10 percent, to 2,369.73 and the Nasdaq Composite added 16.59 points, or 0.28 percent, to 5,861.90.

In its 1987 12-day streak of record-high closes, the Dow rose 9.2 percent compared with just a 3.9 percent gain in the recent record run.

While the S&amp;P 500 is up 10.8 percent since the Nov. 8 election, the pace of the rally has slowed this year.

Trump’s promise a few weeks ago of a “phenomenal” tax announcement helped rekindle the post-election rally, driving the main U.S. markets to record highs.

Time Warner ended up 0.9 percent after news that the head of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission does not expect to review AT&T Inc’s planned $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner.

AT&T slipped 1.3 percent.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.55-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.87-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 63 new 52-week highs and one new low; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 143 new highs and 45 new lows.

(Additional reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and James Dalgleish)

Stocks gain on Trump policy bets; S&P breaks $20 trillion

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) shortly after the opening bell in New York, U.S.,

By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A gauge of global equity stocks and markets advanced on Monday and bond yields rose as investors flocked to assets likely to benefit from reflationary policies that are expected to be implemented by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Financials and banks in particular led equities on Wall Street higher as investors bet Trump’s tax reform plans and softer regulatory environment will boost economic growth and corporate profits.

Comments from Trump on Thursday that he plans to announce what he said would be the most ambitious tax reform plan since the Reagan era in the next few weeks rekindled hopes for big tax cuts while the announced resignation of the Fed’s top bank regulator on Friday heightened expectations for a loosening of rules on banks.

“Investors are willing to say the prospects for growth are higher now than they were, and they’re not just saying it, they’re committing capital,” said Jamie Cox, managing partner of Harris Financial Group in Richmond Virginia.

Investors were also encouraged by a U.S.-Japan summit over the weekend apparently having ended smoothly without Trump talking tough on trade, currency or security issues.

In addition, Trump said on Monday the United States will be “tweaking” its trade relationship with Canada, stopping short of calling for a major realignment in a development likely to please visiting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 142.79 points, or 0.7 percent, to end at 20,412.16, the S&P 500 gained 12.15 points, or 0.52 percent, to 2,328.25 and the Nasdaq Composite added 29.83 points, or 0.52 percent, to 5,763.96.

The advance put the S&P 500’s market capitalization above the $20 trillion mark for the first time. Apple the largest component of the S&P 500 and a core holding on Wall Street, climbed 0.9 percent to a record $133.29, breaking its prior closing high of $133.00 set on Feb. 23, 2015 and giving it a market value of about $699.3 billion.

MSCI’s all-country world index advanced 0.49 percent to notch its fourth straight advance. Europe’s broad FTSEurofirst 300 index gained 0.76 percent to close at its highest since December 2015.

U.S. Treasury yields rose as investors looked to testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen on Tuesday and Wednesday when she gives her semiannual Humphrey Hawkins testimony before lawmakers in Washington.

Benchmark 10-year notes declined 7/32 in price to yield 2.43 percent, up from 2.41 percent late on Friday.

The dollar was up 0.18 percent against a basket of major currencies, after touching its highest in almost three weeks, on expectations reflationary policies would stoke economic growth and the possibility the Fed could be more aggressive in hiking interest rates.

In commodities, copper hit its highest since May 2015 after shipments from Chile and Indonesia, the world’s two biggest copper mines, were disrupted.

The metal last traded at $6,105.85 per tonne, up 0.26 percent on the day after climbing as high as $6,204. On Friday it jumped more than 4 percent, its biggest one-day rise in almost four years.

Oil prices pulled back from strong gains registered on Friday as the greenback strengthened and signs of rising U.S. crude output pressured prices.

International benchmark Brent crude futures settled down 2 percent at $55.59 per barrel and U.S. crude settled 1.7 percent lower at $52.93.

(Additional reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Nick Zieminski and James Dalgleish)

Wall Street opens at record highs as ‘Trump trade’ resumes

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in Manhattan, New York City, U.S.

By Yashaswini Swamynathan

(Reuters) – The main U.S. stock indexes hit record intraday highs on Monday, led by financials and industrials, as the so-called “Trump trade” sparked back to life on renewed optimism about the economy.

The three main indexes closed at record highs on Thursday and Friday rose after President Donald Trump vowed to make a major tax announcement in the next few weeks.

The S&P 500 has surged 8.3 percent since Trump’s Nov. 8 election through Friday’s close, fueled by expectations he will lower corporate taxes, reduce regulations and increase infrastructure spending.

While the rally had stalled amid concerns over Trump’s protectionist stance and lack of clarity on policy reforms, the S&P 500 has not dropped more than 1 percent in 84 trading days, indicating investors were giving Trump the benefit of doubt.

Investors were also comforted by the two-day U.S.-Japan summit held over the weekend apparently having ended smoothly without Trump talking tough on trade, currency and security issues.

The Japanese yen, the demand for which rises when risk appetite falls, was the biggest underperformer among major currencies. World stocks rose, with Asian shares rallying to a 1-1/2-year high.

Global markets are following the leader (U.S. stocks) after the resurgence of the “Trump trade”, Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial wrote in a note.

At 9:38 a.m. EDT the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 91.51 points, or 0.45 percent, at 20,360.88.

The S&P 500 was up 7.44 points, or 0.32 percent, at 2,323.54 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 23.61 points, or 0.41 percent, at 5,757.73.

Six of the 11 major S&P sectors were higher, with financials and industrials gaining the most. The two sectors are seen benefiting the most from Trump’s policies.

Telecom stocks were down the most, 1.4 percent, due to a 1.3 percent drop in Verizon after the network carrier said it would reintroduce its unlimited data plan.

Fears of a price war hit other carriers. ATT was down 1.4 percent, T-Mobile dropped 3 percent, Sprint fell 0.4 percent.

Apple was the top stock on the S&P and the Nasdaq, rising 1 percent and closing on its record high after Goldman Sachs raised its price target on the stock.

Zeltiq Aesthetics surged 12.5 percent to $55.60 after Allergan said it would buy the medical device maker for about $2.48 billion. Allergan’s stock was slightly higher.

Chemours rose 14 percent after the company and DuPont said they had agreed to pay about $671 million in cash to settle several lawsuits related to the leak of a toxic chemical. DuPont’s stock was up 0.5 percent.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 1,987 to 691. On the Nasdaq, 1,784 issues rose and 623 fell.

The S&P 500 index showed 44 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 94 new highs and six new lows.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza)

Stocks bask in Dow’s afterglow, dollar perks up

Indonesia stock market

By Marc Jones

LONDON (Reuters) – World stock markets climbed strongly on Thursday, with investors basking in the afterglow of a break past 20,000 points for Wall Street’s record high Dow Jones index.

MSCI’s 46-country All World index &lt;.MIWD00000PUS&gt; was within touching distance of its lifetime high as European stocks [.EU] rose to their highest since Dec. 2015, completing a global loop after Asia’s main bourses also saw a bumper session. [.T]

The “Trump trade”, based on hopes of U.S. stimulus reflating growth, would appear to be back on – egged on by some impressive corporate earnings, higher commodity prices and signs that growth is finally finding some traction worldwide.

The Dow’s record run looked set to continue later [.N] and the curious outlier of recent weeks, the dollar &lt;.DXY&gt;, pushed off seven-week low it had hit after Trump confirmed he was ready to start building his controversial border wall with Mexico. [FRX/]

There were no such wrinkles in bond markets. Ten-year U.S. Treasury yields &lt;US10YT=RR&gt; were back above 2.53 percent to their highest of 2017 so far and the equivalent German &lt;DE10YT=TWEB&gt; and French yields jumped to their highest levels in over a year.

“The reflation trades are being driven by two main things,” said Neil Williams, chief economist at fund manager Hermes.

“Countries more willing to open the fiscal box and we are awaiting Mr Trump’s long-awaited tax cuts in mid-year. And second is the prospect of ultra-loose monetary policy.”

In commodities, crude oil prices also bounced as global sentiment lifted and the dollar weakened, which helps non-U.S. buyers of dollar-denominated raw materials. [O/R]

U.S. crude &lt;CLc1&gt; was up 0.8 percent at $53.18 a barrel after losing the same amount the previous day. Brent added 0.8 percent to $55.53 a barrel &lt;LCOc1&gt;, while cooper hit a two-month high as a strike loomed at the world’s biggest mine in Chile.

DON’T STOP ME DOW

Wall Street traders were already sifting through results from the likes of Ford &lt;F.N&gt;, Caterpillar &lt;CAT.N&gt; and Dow Chemical &lt;DOW.N&gt;. Service sector PMI numbers are also due later to provide the macro temperature of the world’s largest economy.

The Dow Index had been flirting with 20,000 points for weeks so it brought widespread cheer – and cap brandishing – when it broke through. It only topped 19,000 in November and this was the second-shortest time on record to jump 1,000 points.

SEB investment management’s global head of asset allocation Hans Peterson said he was now taking stock following the moves.

“We are neutral on the U.S. (stocks)” he said. “We think it is sort of stretched although not extremely stretched and not as far as it has been, but (U.S. Treasury) yields are going up and the dollar might be closer towards its turing point.”

Europe’s cross-country European STOXX 600 index &lt;.STOXX&gt; was trading 0.3 percent higher by 1300 GMT at its highest since December 2015. Germany’s DAX &lt;.GDAXI&gt; hit its highest since May 2015 and London’s FTSE &lt;.FTSE&gt; was near an all-time record.

Milan &lt;.FTMIB&gt; also showed little sign of nerves after Italy’s constitutional court on Wednesday opened the way for new elections this year, potentially in the summer and one which will be another populist battle.

Asian shares &lt;.MIAPJ0000PUS&gt; had a good day too. Japan’s Nikkei &lt;.N225&gt; brushed aside a stronger yen to rise 1.7 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng &lt;.HSI&gt; climbed 1.3 percent and Shanghai &lt;.SSEC&gt; edged up ahead of a week-long Lunar New Year holiday.

“Today’s excitement mainly comes from strong U.S. stocks overnight, but people are also positive about Japanese companies’ earnings, especially machinery manufacturers,” said Takuya Takahashi, a strategist at Daiwa Securities in Tokyo.

Back in the currency markets, sterling hit a six-week high after solid GDP data before fizzling. The dollar index &lt;.DXY&gt;, which tracks the greenback against six other top currencies, clawed back from its overnight lows to stand flat on the day.

“The problem that the greenback is having right now is two- fold – first Trump has been talking down the currency and second, his policies make foreign investors nervous,” wrote Kathy Lien, managing director of FX strategy for BK Asset Management.

For Reuters Live Markets blog on European and UK stock markets see reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=http://emea1.apps.cp.extranet.thomsonreuters.biz/cms/?pageId=livemarkets

(Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro in Tokyo; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Wall Street falls after Fed raises rates; energy weighs

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S.

By Rodrigo Campos

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks fell in volatile trading on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter point and signaled hikes could come next year at a faster pace than some expected.

The Fed’s decision comes as President-elect Donald Trump, who will be sworn in next month, is seen cutting taxes and increasing spending on infrastructure. Central bank policymakers shifted their outlook to one of slightly faster growth and lower unemployment.

“The Fed ramped up the pace of rate hikes on a hope and a prayer of faster growth in 2017,” said Brian Jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Funds Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

“Until Trump’s tax and spending plan actually gets implemented, it’s hard to justify the slight increase in the slope of rate hikes.”

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 27.9 points, or 0.14 percent, to 19,883.31, the S&P 500 lost 6.02 points, or 0.26 percent, to 2,265.7 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 7.17 points, or 0.13 percent, to 5,456.66.

Since the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election, stocks have risen on bets that Trump will enact business-friendly policies and stimulate the economy. However, some market participants are concerned that equities are pricing in a very favorable scenario, leaving them vulnerable.

Markets had all but priced in a rate increase at the Fed but the faster pace of increases seen next year may give traders an excuse to cash in the recent gains.

“I’m beginning to think the market might be looking for an excuse to take some profits,” said David Schiegoleit, managing director at U.S. Bank Private Client Reserve in Los Angeles.

“We’ve had such a strong run here for the past couple of weeks that any excuse to take some money off the board might hold a little bit more water than usual. That could be what we see here and heading into the close.”

Oil prices fell more than 3 percent on renewed concerns about an oil glut sparked by rising U.S. crude inventories in storage.

Oil major Exxon declined 1.6 percent and was among the largest drags on the Dow.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 2.47-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.29-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 30 new 52-week highs and 1 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 102 new highs and 38 new lows.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos, additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Nick Zieminski)

Energy shares lift Dow, S&P techs drag Nasdaq

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S.,

By Tanya Agrawal

(Reuters) – The S&P 500 and the Dow hit record highs on Monday, fueled by energy shares, while the Nasdaq was lower, dragged down by technology stocks, a day ahead of the Fed’s two-day meeting.

Oil prices gained as much as 6.5 percent to an 18-month high after OPEC and some of its rivals reached their first deal since 2001 to jointly reduce output to try to tackle global oversupply and boost prices.

The S&P energy index was the top performing sector with a 1.7 percent rise. Oil major Exxon was up 2.54 percent, providing the biggest boost to the Dow and S&P. Chevron rose 2.2 percent.

President-elect Donald Trump’s expected agenda of economic stimulus and reduced taxes and regulations has fueled a market rally, with the benchmark S&P 500 rising 5.6 percent since Nov. 8 to Friday’s close.

The Dow has closed at record highs 14 times since the election.

“The market has been rising on the incoming administration’s proposals, but how many of those actually pass through Congress remains to be seen,” said Paul Nolte, portfolio manager at Kingsview Asset Management in Chicago.

“Investors are expecting the Fed to hike rates but are more interested in the tone of the statement.”

Market participants are keeping a close watch on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s last meeting for the year, beginning Tuesday, with a statement from Fed Chair Janet Yellen on Wednesday.

At 10:58 a.m. ET (1558 GMT) the Dow Jones industrial average was up 32.96 points, or 0.17 percent, at 19,789.81, the S&P 500  was down 1.68 points, or 0.074352 percent, at 2,257.85 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 30.87 points, or 0.57 percent, at 5,413.63.

Six of the 11 major S&P sectors were higher.

The consumer discretionary led the decliners with a 0.82 percent fall, weighed down by a 1.24 percent drop in Amazon’s shares.

The industrials sector was down 0.58 percent, dragged down by defense stocks.

Lockheed Martin declined 3.9 percent at $249.22 after Donald Trump tweeted that the company’s F-35 program and costs were “out of control”. Other defense stocks, such as General Dynamics, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman, were down between 2.7-4.5 percent.

Viacom fell 8.5 percent to a two-month low of $35.35 after Sumner Redstone’s privately-held National Amusements withdrew its merger proposal for CBS and Viacom, according to a source familiar with the situation. CBS was down 2.7 percent.

Ophthotech slumped 84.9 percent to a life-low of $5.85 after Novartis said a combination of its eye drug along with the company’s did not produce better outcomes.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by 1,793 to 1,058. On the Nasdaq, 1,808 issues fell and 887 advanced.

The S&P 500 index showed 59 new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 165 new highs and 16 new lows.

(Reporting by Tanya Agrawal; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

Wall Street hits new high as post-election rally roars ahead

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S.,

By Yashaswini Swamynathan

(Reuters) – Wall Street’s post-election rally showed no signs of fatigue as the three major indexes hit all-time highs on Thursday.

Donald Trump’s election as U.S. president last month sparked euphoria on Wall Street, with investors chasing stocks that are likely to gain from his proposals to spend more on infrastructure and simplify industry regulation.

“Investors are getting excited over the prospects of a new administration, a fresh mindset and a man who knows how to do business,” said Andre Bakhos, managing director at Janlyn Capital in Bernardsville, New Jersey.

“While there was also a technical aspect to the move yesterday … the mindset right now is that any pullback is seen as bullish. It’s an opportunity to buy into the market, not sell.”

The Dow industrials, the Dow Transport, the S&P 500 and the Russell 2000 indexes closed at record levels on Wednesday.

The European Central Bank unexpectedly reduced its asset purchase plans to 60 billion euros ($64 billion) from the current 80 billion euros on Thursday, but reserved the right to increase buying once again.

Adding to the bullish tone was a report that showed the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell from a five-month high last week, pointing to a robust labor market and building on a recent spate of strong economic data.

At 9:42 a.m. ET the Dow Jones industrial average was up 39.58 points, or 0.2 percent, at 19,589.2. It hit a record high of 19,592.95 – its 10th since the Nov.8 election.

The S&amp;P 500 was up 2.13 points, or 0.1 percent, at 2,243.48, slightly below its high of 2,243.56.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 8.60 points, or 0.16 percent, at 5,402.36, easing from a high of 5,403.88.

Eight of the 11 major S&amp;P 500 sectors were lower, but the losses were offset by a 0.85 percent rise in financials and gains in materials and energy.

Bank of America, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo rose between 0.9 percent and 1.6 percent, boosting the S&P 500.

Investors, however, are likely to tread cautiously ahead of the Federal Reserve’s meeting next week, where traders see a more than 90 chance of an interest rate hike.

Lululemon soared 17.3 percent to $70.20 following the yoga and leisure apparel retailer’s reported of a better-than-expected quarterly profit.

Costco rose 2.5 percent to $157.86 in thin trading after the warehouse club retailer reported a quarterly profit that beat analysts’ expectations.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by 1,317 to 1,289. On the Nasdaq, 1,141 issues rose and 1,126 fell.

The S&P 500 index showed 83 new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 173 new highs and five new lows.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)