Market Roundup: Mid-Week Rally Not Enough to Pull October into the Black

Published: Nov. 9, 2018, 4:13 p.m.

Despite an early bump, most market sectors retreated Monday with heavy selling in Technology and Energy stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.99%, while the S+P Index was down 0.66%. The NASDAQ Composite was down the most with a -1.60% change for the day. In economic news, personal income rose 0.2% in September while spending increased 0.4% during the month. Market action reversed Tuesday, moving 1.57% higher on the day. The Communications Services sector led the way higher improving by almost 2.5%, followed closely by Energy companies, which gained 2.3% on the day. Materials and Industrials gained more than 2% on the day as well. Fears of trade disruptions and election outcome instability remain, but consumers gained confidence in the middle of it all according to the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which gained 2.6 points relative to September, ending at 137.9 after September’s numbers were revised lower. Halloween looked promising for the U.S. equity markets, but some investors took their gains before the session ended. The Dow closed with a gain of about 1% while the S+P 500 Index was up around 1.1%. Most of the 10 sectors were up with Technology posting the biggest gains; thus, the tech-heavy NASDAQ was the winner for the day, closing up 2%. However, the rally in the last two days was not enough to pull October into the black. In economic news, the latest report from ADP showed that October payrolls exceeded expectations. The rally continued Thursday across the major indices with the S+P 500 gaining 1.06%, the Dow gaining 1.06%, and the NASDAQ rising 1.75%. The gains were likely due to investors’ fears about a trade war with China easing, as news reported recent talks went well. Solid earnings also likely boosted the market. For the day, Materials and Consumer Discretionary performed well while the Utilities sector lagged the broader market. On Friday, the S+P 500 slipped 0.63% lower as the 10-Year Treasury yield rose 0.08% on the day. Higher interest rates, likely sparked by better-than-expected October employment numbers, sent stocks lower, led by Information Technology.