Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Stock Market News for Jul 16, 2024

Read MoreHide Full Article

U.S stocks closed higher on Monday, building on Friday’s rally, as investors increased their bets on the chances of Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential election in November following a failed assassination attempt on the Republican nominee over the weekend. All three major indexes ended in positive territory.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) jumped  0.5% or 210.82 points, to end at 40,211.72 points, recording a new closing high.This was the blue-chip index’s first new record close since May 17, and the 20th record close in 2025.

The S&P 500 rose 0.3% or 15.87 points, to close at 5,631.22 points. Financial and industrial stocks were the biggest gainers.

The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) gained 1.5%. The Industrials Select Sector SPDR (XLI) added 0.7%. Six of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in positive territory.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.4% or 74.12 points to finish at 18,472.57 points.

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was up 5.30% to 13.12. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.35-to-1 ratio. On the Nasdaq, a 1.50-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues. A total of 11.07 billion shares were traded on Monday, lower than the last 20-session average of 11.59 billion.

Wall Street Rally Continues on September Rate Cut Hopes

On Monday, Wall Street built on Friday’s rally as investors grew hopeful that the Federal Reserve will start interest rate cuts from September, following positive economic data released over the past week.

The monthly inflation rate fell for the first time in four years after the consumer price index declined 0.1% month over month in June. Also, signs of a cooling labor market could draw the Federal Reserve another step closer to starting interest rate cuts in September.

A failed assassination attempt on former President Trump over the weekend also made investors believe that it will increase the chances of the Republican nominee in the November election. Trump winning the election is also likely to result in a more hawkish trade policy, including an extension of tax cuts and deregulation.

The Republican National Convention also began on Monday in Wisconsin that showed Trump leading President Joe Biden in the national polls.

Crypto stocks fared well on Monday, with shares of Coinbase Global, Inc. ((COIN - Free Report) ) and Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. ((MARA - Free Report) ) surging 11.4% and 18.3%, respectively. Coinbase has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The second-quarter earnings season is also gathering pace, with several big banks scheduled to report their quarterly results this week. Bank of America ((BAC - Free Report) ), Johnson & Johnson ((JNJ - Free Report) ), Netflix ((NFLX - Free Report) ) and American Express ((AXP - Free Report) ) are scheduled to report earnings over the week.

Economic Data

The New York Empire State Manufacturing Index came up with a negative reading for July. The index fell to a reading of -6.6% in July.

Published in