The Week on Wall Street
The post-Memorial Day holiday trading week was short but potent as stocks delivered more record gains while confidence grew that a peace deal would materialize.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced 1.43 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 2.39 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.90 percent. The MSCI EAFE Index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, rose 0.99 percent.1,2
Ninth Straight for S&P
Stocks got off to a good start as the chipmaker-led rally continued to support the broader market, while the White House reported diplomatic progress on a Middle East peace deal.3
Leadership shifted a bit midweek, with the Dow rising modestly to a new record close as oil prices fell.4
The S&P and Nasdaq opened higher Thursday on upbeat economic news. Both posted solid gains, while the Dow Industrials went sideways.5
Stocks wrapped up the week and the month on positive notes. Sliding oil prices and technology gains helped push all three averages to record intraday and closing highs, including the Dow cracking the 51,000 mark for the first time.6
Economic Updates
It was a mixed bag of economic news last week, with four key April data points released on Thursday.
The Fed’s preferred inflation measure came in cooler than expected. The personal-consumption expenditure (PCE) index rose 0.4 percent in April, less than the 0.5 percent expected. Annual PCE rose 3.8 percent.7
The Gross Domestic Product report showed the economy grew more slowly in Q1 than initially estimated, with the estimate revised down to 1.6 percent annualized growth.7
In a good sign for manufacturing, durable goods orders rose 7.9 percent in April, double the expected pace and the biggest increase in almost a year. The main reason? Civilian aircraft orders soared 166 percent after China ordered 200 planes following a recent U.S.-China presidential summit.8
Homebuyers bought 6.2 percent fewer new homes in April over the prior month. But investors focused on the fact that homebuyers bought 8.9 percent and 7.4 percent more new homes in February and March, respectively, over the prior month.9
Weekly Riddle
Last Week’s Riddle: At times it begs to be answered, sometimes it interrupts you, but it will never ask you a question. What is it?
Answer: A phone.
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