U.S. Major Averages Extend Weekly Gains

Barry Adams
09 Feb, 2024
New York City

 Benchmark indexes on Wall Street rested in Friday's trading after a busy week of earnings.

The S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.3% in early trading, and investors looked beyond rate uncertainty and focused on a resilient economy and disinflation.

Market indexes are expected to extend gains for the fifth week in a row after more than half of the companies included in the S&P 500 reported better-than-expected earnings.

The S&P 500 index last closed above the 4,000 mark on April 1, 2021, and it took another three years to add the next 1,000 points.

For the week, the WS&P 500 index is up 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite is trading higher by 1.1%.

Tech stocks are expected to lead the market indexes higher in Friday's trading. 

 

U.S. indexes and yields

The S&P 500 index decreased 0.3% to 5,034.12, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.4% to 15,864.48.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes increased to 4.48%, 10-year Treasury notes rose to 4.17%, and 30-year Treasury bonds edged up to 4.37%.

Natural gas prices dropped to a 3-year low after the latest weekly report from the Energy Information Administration indicated smaller-than-expected inventory withdrawals last week.

WTI crude oil decreased $0.19 to $76.01 a barrel, and natural gas prices declined 6 cents to $1.85 a thermal unit, a low last seen in September 2020.

Gold decreased by $6.58 to $2,026.81 an ounce and extended the previous week's gains after the U.S. dollar gained in international trading.

The dollar index, which weighs the U.S. dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, edged lower to 104.19.

 

U.S. Stock Movers

Cloudflare jumped 25.3% to $113.50 after the cyber security online content distribution network company reported quarterly results and estimates that surpassed market expectations.

The company won larger deals from existing and new customers, driving its annual contact value to record highs.

PepsiCo decreased 1% to $172.20 after the food and beverage maker reported mixed quarterly results and said food and beverage volumes declined in its North American unit.

Volumes in its beverage unit declined 6%, Quaker Foods fell 8%, and Frito-Lay eased 2%.