Stocks experienced a modest rise in the early trading session on Tuesday, continuing a positive trend into the afternoon. All the leading averages have seen growth today, with the Dow Jones on track for its fifth successive closing on an uptick.
As of now, the primary averages are somewhat below their day's top. The Dow Jones is rising by 73.85 points (0.2%) at 38,926.12, the Nasdaq is growing by 40.57 points (0.3%) at 16,389.82 and the S&P 500 is advancing by 17.22 points (0.3%) at 5,197.96.
Today's moderate Wall Street growth is due to the renewed optimism surrounding interest rate prospects. Comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, considered fairly dovish, along with a less-than-forecast job growth in April, have almost completely disregarded concerns that the Fed might increase rates.
Investors are now becoming more convinced of a rate cut in the upcoming months. As per CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, there is now an 89.1% chance that rates will be lower by September.
However, traders seem to be taking a pause from making substantial moves post the significant progression in the past few sessions. This swift surge has elevated the major averages to their highest levels in nearly a month.
Looking at individual stocks, Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) shares have seen a significant rise post their telehealth company reporting better-than-estimated first quarter results and providing promising second quarter revenue projection. Additionally, Clothing retailer Gap (GPS) reported a strong upward trend after Citi shifted its rating for the company's shares to Buy from Neutral.
Conversely, Disney (DIS) shares experienced considerable losses despite the entertainment giant reporting higher-than-predicted fiscal third quarter earnings.
Sector-wise, oil service stocks have seen considerable growth, leading to a 1.4% rise in the Philadelphia Oil Service Index, thanks to an increase in the price of crude oil, which climbed by $0.44 to $78.92 a barrel. Commercial real estate stocks also showed some strength with the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index posting a 1.1% gain. Pharmaceutical and steel stocks also experienced some gains, while airline stocks saw a sharp decline, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.1%.
In international trading, most Asia-Pacific stock markets saw growth in Tuesday’s trading session. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index and South Korea's Kospi surged by 1.6% and 2.2% respectively, while China's Shanghai Composite Index grew by 0.2%. The major European markets also trended upwards. Germany's DAX Index surged by 1.4%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index grew by 1.2% and the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 1.0%.
As for the bond market, treasuries extended the upward trend witnessed over previous sessions. Consequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which is inversely related to its price, fell by 4.4 basis points to 4.445%.
