Stock market today: Wall Street closes its best week of the year with some more gains (2024)

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street coasted to the close of its best week since November, as U.S. stocks drifted a bit higher Friday.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% for a seventh straight gain and pulled back within 2% of its all-time high set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 96 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.2%.

Treasury yields eased in the bond market following a couple mixed reports on the U.S. economy. One showed homebuilders broke ground on fewer projects last month than forecast, which threw some cold water on the market. Optimism had been rising earlier in the week following a flurry of better-than-expected reports on everything from inflation to sales at U.S. retailers.

But a report later in the morning suggested U.S. consumers are feeling better about the economy than expected. That’s a big deal for Wall Street because their spending makes up the bulk of the economy.

Friday’s relatively calm trading capped a manic week where strong economic data helped right Wall Street following a scary run. The S&P 500 had briefly dropped close to 10% below its record last week, as stocks reeled worldwide on a range of worries. Many of those questions are still hanging over the market, just not quite as precariously as before.

Stock market today: Wall Street closes its best week of the year with some more gains (1)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Ahn Young-joon

One concern centered on the strength of the U.S. economy following a surprisingly weak report on hiring last month.

Even though confidence rose in the economy’s strength following this week’s strong run of reports, it is still likely slowing under the weight of high interest rates. That’s by design. The Federal Reserve’s goal has been trying to cool what was a hot job market by making it more expensive for companies and households to borrow and spend. The Fed did that that to remove upward pressure on inflation, which peaked at more than 9% two summers ago.

The question is whether the slowdown in the economy’s growth will overshoot and become a recession. That’s still to be determined, but the hope on Wall Street is that an expected cut to interest rates at the Fed’s next meeting in September will help forestall that.

The market’s focus will swing next week to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. That’s where Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will give a speech late in the week, and the setting has been home to big policy announcements in the past.

Because the Fed has said its upcoming moves will depend in large part on what data reports at the time say, “it will be difficult for Powell to pre-commit to a particular trajectory at Jackson Hole,” say economists at Deutsche Bank led by Matthew Luzzetti.

But Powell could offer hints about whether the Fed is hoping to merely remove the brakes from the economy through rate cuts or give it an accelerant.

A second big concern for the market has focused on whether investors took the prices of Nvidia and other highly influential Big Tech stocks too high in their frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology.

That debate is still ongoing. Within just an hour on Friday morning, Nvidia went from being the single heaviest weight on the S&P 500 to the strongest force lifting the index. It flipped from an early 1.4% drop to end with a rise of 1.4%.

Such swings have become typical for the stock that’s become the face of the AI craze. After soaring more than 170% through the year’s first six and a half months, Nvidia plunged more than 20% over the ensuing three weeks.

A third factor that’s caused global markets’ big swings is more technical, one triggered by a hike to interest rates by the Bank of Japan. That forced hedge funds around the world to abandon a popular trade en masse, where they had borrowed Japanese yen at cheap rates to invest elsewhere.

The forced and sudden selling that ensued hit markets worldwide, but it calmed after a top Bank of Japan official said it won’t raise rates further as long as markets are unstable. Analysts, though, say more potential selling may still be left to uncoil in the system.

On Wall Street, H&R Block leaped 12.1% for one of the market’s bigger gains after it reported a bigger-than-expected profit for the latest quarter. It also increased its dividend 17% and announced a stock buyback program of up to $1.5 billion.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 11.03 points to 5,554.25. The Dow gained 96.70 to 40,659.76, and the Nasdaq composite added 37.22 to 17,631.72.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 3.88% from 3.92% late Thursday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for Fed action, fell to 4.05% from 4.10% late Thursday.

In stock markets abroad, Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 3.6% to cap its best week in more than four years. It was a strong rebound from its sharp losses the week before, which included the worst day for the Japanese stock market since the Black Monday crash of 1987.

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Stock market today: Wall Street closes its best week of the year with some more gains (2024)

FAQs

What are the best and worst days of the week for stocks? ›

Mondays and Fridays tend to be good days to trade stocks, while the middle of the week is less volatile. Historically, April, October, and November have been the best months to buy stocks, while September has shown the worst performance.

What day of the week is the stock market up the most? ›

Whether because of weekend optimism or because Saturday and Sunday's news hasn't been priced into the market yet, many traders feel that Fridays see stocks and indices priced higher. This could make Friday a good time to sell stocks, hopefully for a slightly better price than they might fetch on Monday.

What month is best for stock market gains? ›

Since 1950, the strongest months for stocks, on average, have been April and November. However, it's not always this way. For example, in April 2024, the S&P 500 monthly return was negative.

What is the 3-5-7 rule in trading? ›

The 3-5-7 rule in trading is a risk management guideline that suggests limiting the amount of capital you put into any single trade. According to this rule, you should not risk more than 3% of your trading capital on any one trade, no more than 5% on any one sector, and no more than 7% on all trades combined.

What is the 11am rule in trading? ›

The 11 a.m. trading rule is a general guideline used by traders based on historical observations throughout trading history. It stipulates that if there has not been a trend reversal by 11 a.m. EST, the chance that an important reversal will occur becomes smaller during the rest of the trading day.

What is the 10 am rule in stock trading? ›

Some traders follow something called the "10 a.m. rule." The stock market opens for trading at 9:30 a.m., and the time between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. often has significant trading volume. Traders that follow the 10 a.m. rule think a stock's price trajectory is relatively set for the day by the end of that half-hour.

Is it better to buy stock on Monday or Friday? ›

On Mondays, markets can be affected by news from the weekend. On Fridays, traders may dump stocks that haven't met expectations so they don't have to hold them over the weekend. However, when it comes to investing, the difference between days of the week has become negligible and shifts from year to year.

Is it better to buy stocks in the morning or afternoon? ›

The opening period (9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time) is often one of the best hours of the day for day trading, offering the biggest moves in the shortest amount of time. A lot of professional day traders stop trading around 11:30 a.m. because that is when volatility and volume tend to taper off.

What month do stocks drop the most? ›

One of the historical realities of the stock market is that it typically has performed poorest during the month of September. The "Stock Trader's Almanac" reports that, on average, September is the month when the stock market's three leading indexes usually perform the poorest.

What is the best day to put money in the stock market? ›

Best day of the week to buy stock: Monday

Monday would probably be the best day of the week to buy stock, according to a market theory called the “Monday or weekend effect.” The Monday effect says that the market will continue gaining on Monday if the market was up on Friday.

What time of day are stock prices lowest? ›

During the last 10-15 minutes before market close. Or about an hour after the market opens. And lastly to avoid the lunchtimes as it's generally the quietest time of the market day of you want to get the best price possible for either the buy or the sale.

What is the 5 rule in the stock market? ›

This sort of five percent rule is a yardstick to help investors with diversification and risk management. Using this strategy, no more than 1/20th of an investor's portfolio would be tied to any single security. This protects against material losses should that single company perform poorly or become insolvent.

What is the rule number 1 in the stock market? ›

According to Mr. Buffett, there are only two rules to investing: Rule #1: Don't lose money, and Rule #2: Don't forget rule #1.

What day of the week are stocks usually the lowest? ›

Stock prices fall on Mondays, following a rise on the previous trading day (usually Friday). This timing translates to a recurrent low or negative average return from Friday to Monday in the stock market.

What weekday should I buy stocks? ›

The Most Lucrative Day

Many forums will tell you that Monday is the best day to buy stocks, while Friday is the best day to sell stocks. The logic behind this advice is that stock prices are said to be at the lowest on a Monday (meaning you will buy shares at a lower price).

What days of the week are best for trading? ›

In most cases, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays can be slightly less risky for traders. However, traders should not always shy away from trading on Mondays and Fridays if a good opportunity presents itself.

What day of the week is most volatile for stocks? ›

The highest volatility occurs on Mondays for Germany and Japan, on Fridays for Canada and the United States, and on Thursdays for the United Kingdom. For most of the markets, the days with the highest volatility also coincide with that market's lowest trading volume.

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