U.S. Market Indexes Higher as U.K. Likely to Remain in the European Union
U.S. market indexes gained as an exit from the European Union seemed unlikely for the U.K. in voting on Thursday. For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18011.07 for a gain of 230.24 points or 1.29 percent. The S&P 500 was also higher, closing at 2113.32 for a gain of 27.87 points or 1.34 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 4910.04 for a gain of 76.72 points or 1.59 percent. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 17.67 for a loss of -3.50 points or -16.53 percent.
Source: DJIA, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. Google Finance.
Thursday’s Market Movers
As votes seemed to favor the U.K. remaining in the European Union, economic indicators also showed some strengthening. Jobless claims were lower for the week, down 18,000 from the previous week. The PMI Manufacturing Index gained at 51.4, up from 50.5 and ahead of consensus at 51. New home sales were slightly lower than expectations, increasing to a level of 551,000 SAAR. Consensus was for 565,000 SAAR and the previous month showed the annual rate at 586,000 SAAR. The Leading Indicators report however showed further economic declines comprehensively. The monthly Leading Indicators report showed a decrease of -0.2 percent, below consensus of 0.2 percent.
Stocks trading actively for the day included Bank of America, Apple, General Electric, Microsoft, Citigroup, Ford and Pfizer.
Overall, the Brexit vote was the focus of trading for the day and currencies were especially volatile on Thursday. The dollar was lower against the euro and the pound on Thursday with an exchange rate of 1.1391 for a euro and 1.4897 for the pound.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average the following stocks led gains:
Gains (percent)
Goldman Sachs 3.05
Caterpillar 2.34
Visa 2.22
Intel 2.17
JPMorgan 2.14
Top sectors for the broad market were financial, energy and materials. In technology the Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 4910.04 for a gain of 76.72 points or 1.59 percent. The Nasdaq 100 was also higher at 4467.48 for a gain of 62.76 points or 1.42 percent. In the technology sector the following stocks led gains:
Gains (percent)
Liberty Global 6.88
Western Digital 5.09
Incyte Corp. 4.03
In commodities, gold traded lower as evidenced by the SPDR Gold Trust which reported a loss of -0.84 points or -0.69 percent. The dollar was lower for the day as the U.S. Dollar Index was down -0.28 points or -0.30 percent to 93.27.
Small-Cap Stocks
In small-caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1172.22 for a gain of 23.25 points or 2.02 percent. The S&P 600 closed at 719.19 for a gain of 14.08 points or 2.00 percent. The DJ Small-Cap Growth TSM closed at 7189.35 for a gain of 141.58 points or 2.01 percent. The DJ Small-Cap Value TSM closed at 8448.04 for a gain of 142.37 points or 1.71 percent.
Other Notable Indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index which closed at 1517.51 for a gain of 26.30 points or 1.76 percent; the Russell 3000 which closed at 1247.10 for a gain of 17.46 points or 1.42 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index which closed at 607.55 for a gain of 8.10 points or 1.35 percent.
