US stock market finished higher for second consecutive session on Tuesday, 23 April 2024, as bargain buying continued across the sectors after market selloff in last week and batch of encouraging earnings updates.
Investors also awaited a slew of key U.S. economic data this week, including reports on new home sales, durable goods orders and personal income and spending. Earnings season also starts to pick up steam this week, with Tesla, Boeing, IBM, Caterpillar, Honeywell, Alphabet, Intel, Microsoft, Chevron and Exxon Mobil among the companies due to report their quarterly results.
At closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index was up 263.71 points, or 0.69%, to 38,503.69. The S&P500 index advanced 59.95 points, or 1.2%, to 5,070.55. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index increased by 245.33 points, or 1.59%, to 15,696.64.
Total 10 of 11 S&P500 sectors closed higher along with S&P500 index, with information technology was top performing sector, rising 1.71%, while material sector was bottom performer, falling 0.83%.
Among individual stocks, Spotify Technology SA shares surged 16% after the audio-streaming giant reported it swung to a profit in the first quarter, as the company boosted subscribers and added new features. Paid subscribers rose 14% year over year to 239 million.
Globe Life shares surged more than 11% after the life insurance company raised its full-year earnings guidance. The life insurer anticipates earnings per share between $11.50 and $12.00 for 2024, up from a prior range between $11.30 and $11.80.
GE Aerospace shares jumped nearly 7% on Tuesday after it beat first-quarter earnings expectations and raised its operating profit outlook.GE Aerospace expects adjusted earnings to come out between $3.80 and $4.05 a share, and an operating profit between $6.2 billion and $6.6 billion, which is higher than its previous forecast.
ECONOMIC NEWS: US New Home Sales Surge 8.8% In March- A report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday showed a substantial increase in new home sales in the U.S. in the month of March. The Commerce Department said new home sales spiked by 8.8 percent to an annual rate of 693,000 in March after plunging by 5.1 percent to a revised rate of 637,000 in February. Meanwhile, the report also said median sales price of new houses sold in March was $430,700, down 1.9 percent from $438,900 a year ago. The estimate of new houses for sale at the end of March was 477,000, while represents a supply of 8.3 months at the current sales rate.
US Business Activity Growth Slows In April- US business activity continued to increase in April, but the rate of expansion slowed amid signs of weaker demand. The latest rise in output was the smallest in the year-to-date reflecting reduced rates of growth and falling orders in both the manufacturing and services sectors. April saw an overall reduction in new orders for the first time in six months. Companies responded by scaling back employment for the first time in almost four years, with business confidence also waning to the lowest since last November. Rates of inflation generally eased at the start of the second quarter, with both input costs and output prices rising less quickly at the composite level. That said, manufacturing input cost inflation hit a one-year high. The headline S&P Global Flash US PMI Composite Output Index dropped to 50.9 in April from 52.1 in March. Although continuing to signal an increase in business activity during the month, the latest data indicated only a slight expansion and one that was the softest since December. Nevertheless, output has now risen for 15 consecutive months. Slower increases in activity were recorded across both the manufacturing and services sectors, with rates of growth easing to three- and five-month lows respectively. The S&P Global Flash US Manufacturing PMI posted 49.9 in April to signal broadly unchanged business conditions over the course of the month. The index was down from 51.9 in March and ended a three-month sequence of improving operating conditions. US manufacturers drew down their stocks of purchases for the second consecutive month in April, and to a solid degree that was the most marked since August last year. Firms made some efforts to limit the pace of depletion, however, raising their purchasing activity slightly following a fall in the previous survey period.
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