Day Traders Diary

4/22/20

The major averages rebound for the first time in three days on Wednesday as crude prices stabilized after a record plunge while better-than-expected earnings also lifted market sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 456 points, or nearly 2%, to 23,475. The S&P 500 climbed 2.3% to 2,799 while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.8%. to 8,495.

The West Texas Intermediate contract for June was up 19%, settling at $13.78 per barrel, after an earlier decline. Brent futures, meanwhile, were up 7.6% at $20.76 per barrel, recovering from a sharp overnight drop. Energy stocks rose broadly amid oil's surge. The sector gained over 3% as Halliburton closed 10.3% higher. Diamondback Energy and Noble Energy both gained more than 7%.

Crude seemed to get a jolt after President Donald Trump tweeted he had "instructed the United States Navy to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea."Oil's move higher comes after the May contract, which expired on Tuesday, traded at a negative price for the first time ever earlier in the week amid concerns over dwindling demand amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Oil's historic drop led to a Dow decline of more than 1,000 points, or 5.1%, between Monday and Tuesday. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq lost more than 4% each to start off the week.

A slew of companies rose on the back of solid quarterly reports, giving the broader market a boost.Chipotle Mexican Grill posted a better-than-expected profit, sending its stock up more than 12%. Snap gained 36.7% after releasing its latest quarterly results. Texas Instruments climbed over 4.8% after the chipmaker released its earnings for the previous quarter.

U.S. Treasuries finished on a lower note with longer-dated maturities backtracking from their recent advance. The 2-yr yield increased one basis point to 0.21%, and the 10-yr yield increased five basis points to 0.62%. The U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.1% to 100.40.