Traders remain cautious as US rate hikes loom – New York Report
LAST week’s losses were partly recovered yesterday, as stocks made modest gains in a session marked by cautious trading as investors reacted to mixed economic data.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29.69 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 18,040.37, the S&P 500 gained 4.34 points, or 0.21 per cent, to 2,111.73 and the Nasdaq Composite added 12.90 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 5,082.93.
Investors are weighing data to try to guess how soon the Federal Reserve might raise interest rates. Boston Fed president Eric Rosengren said with little evidence of a rebound, the Fed is in no position to start raising interest rates for the first time since 2006.
“The things that seem to be driving the market today are a bounce-back from the selling and some pretty good economic data. But as the day has professed, some of the enthusiasm has worn off since the debate continues as to when the Fed is going to raise rates,” said Bucky Hellwig, senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.
“The risk is that the Fed raises interest rates into a slowing economy.”
Intel fell 1.6 per cent to $33.90 and was the biggest drag on the three major indexes after the company agreed to buy programmable-chip maker Altera for $16.7bn (£11bn). Altera rose 5.8 per cent to $51.68.