Market Summary: The Long & the short of it.
The S&P 500 soared to all-time highs in inter-day trading on Friday and settled just below the high to close at 3021 or +0.41%. It was the third straight day of positive returns on the S&P 500. The exuberance followed a statement from the Trump administration, that it was making progress on a preliminary trade agreement with China. The positive statement from the administration combined with a batch of positive corporate earnings results, helped propel the biggest short-squeeze in six weeks, mirroring the mid-September rebound.
The New York Composite (NYA) also produced a positive gain on the day and closed at 13,149 or +0.21%. The New York Composite (NYA) which is an indicator of the boarder U.S. market, the inside of the stock market if you like, has not managed to exceed its all-time high set on January 22, 2018.
Of note in Friday’s trading, Amazon’s (AMZN) collapse after trading on Thursday sparked a panic-bid at Friday’s open, allowing Amazon to recover half of what it lost on Thursday evening to finish at $1,762, for a loss of -1.09%.
Perhaps the bigger news saw Bitcoin stage a Lazarus-like recovery on Friday following its near-death experience on Wednesday and Thursday. A monster bid was placed on the crypto benchmark at 9 am Friday morning and launched the coin from it Thursday’s low of $7506 to its Friday close of $8626. The majority of the crypto space ended the week higher after today’s huge buying.
Gold, Silver and Crude Oil (WTI) all managed green closes, finishing at $1505 an ounce, $18.03 an ounce, and $57 a barrel, respectively.
U.S. Treasury yields ended the week higher after their spike on Friday, the 10-year yield finishing at 1.8% for the first time in five weeks.
Asian stocks ended the week notably higher after Friday’s buying spree.
European markets were mostly higher on the week with the German (DAX) leading as trade hopes were revived. The UK’s FTSE disappointed in the week as the Brexit negotiations continue on the merry-go-round.
Despite global uncertainty being at all-time record highs, the fear gauge (VIX) got hammered back below the 13 handle for the first time since July.