Day Traders Diary

8/19/19

The major averages rose sharply today as Treasury yields rebounded, quelling fears of a possible recession. Equities also got a boost after the U.S. agreed to extend a temporary reprieve to Chinese telecom giant Huawei. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 249 points at 26,135. The S&P 500 gained 1.2% to close at 2,923 led by energy and tech sectors. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.4% to end the day at 8,002.

These gains add to a rebound that started last week after the Dow posted its worst session of 2019. The 30-stock index plummeted 800 points, or 3.1% on Wednesday before regaining some of the lost ground on Thursday and Friday. The S&P 500 is still down 1.9% in August and off more than 3% from a recent record.

All 11 S&P 500 sectors posted gains. Seven sectors rose at least 1%, including a 2.1% gain in the energy sector. Noticeable gains in the mega-cap stocks provided strong support for the information technology sector up 1.6%, communication services up 1.4%, and consumer discretionary up 1.3%.

Apple was one of those mega-cap outperformers following a meeting between Apple CEO Tim Cook and President Trump over the weekend. President Trump said Mr. Cook presented a "compelling argument" for how tariffs would make it harder for Apple to compete against foreign competitors. Apple shares rose nearly 2%.

Estee Lauder was a diamond today, rising 12.5% after the company beat top and bottom-line estimates and provided upbeat guidance for fiscal 2020.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose to about 1.6% from around 1.54%. Bank shares rose along with yields. Bank of America closed 0.9% higher along with J.P. Morgan Chase. Citigroup climbed 1.3%.