Indian ADRs end strictly higher led by banking ADRs and Infosys
U.S. stocks ended higher Monday, 14 April 2014 reclaiming some of the previous week's sharp losses after a stronger-than-expected rise in March retail sales and Citigroup's quarterly results. Trade was choppy in late activity, with the Nasdaq Composite dipping into the red before finishing higher and other indexes temporarily trimming gains.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with a gain of 146.49 points, or 0.9%, at 16,173.24, while the S&P 500 rose 14.92 points, or 0.8%, to 1,830.61. The Nasdaq Composite gained 22.96 points, or 0.6%, to 4,022.69.
The stock market began the session on an upbeat note, casting aside renewed concerns about the situation in Ukraine, where the country's army was called in over the weekend to deal with pro-Russian separatists in several cities in the Southeast.
The market rallied in the morning after Citigroup's above-consensus quarterly results.
The energy sector outperformed throughout the session with support from Dow components Chevron and ExxonMobil, both of which posted gains close to 1.3% gains. The sector ended in the lead while crude oil rose 0.4% to $104.05/bbl.
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Russia-Ukraine tensions are back on the front burner. During the weekend Ukrainian troops were mobilized to counter a surging pro-Russia movement by protesters who have tried to occupy some Ukraine cities. Ukraine government officials have accused Russia of instigating and even arming the protesters. Meantime, Russian troops are still massed on the Russia-Ukraine border.
In other news Monday, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi said Saturday the recent strength of the Euro currency could prompt fresh easing of ECB monetary policy, in order to keep deflationary pressures on the EU economy in check. This news dropped the Euro and supported the U.S. dollar index.
The featured U.S. economic report of the day was retail sales data for March, which came in better than expected. Retail sales increased 1.1% in March after increasing an upwardly revised 0.7% (from 0.3%) in February. The consensus expected retail sales to increase 1.0%. As expected from the motor vehicle sales data, auto sales contributed significantly to overall sales growth. Sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers increased 3.1% in March after increasing 2.5% in February. Excluding autos, retail sales still increased a solid 0.7% in March, up from a 0.3% gain in February. The consensus expected these sales to increase 0.5%. Sales were strong all around, but there wasn't much to suggest that the acceleration in spending was the result of pent-up demand from delayed winter spending.
The March employment report showed a 0.7% increase in aggregate wages, which exactly matched spending after stripping out autos. Business inventories increased 0.4% for a second consecutive month in February. The consensus expected inventories to increase 0.6%. Total inventories consist of manufacturers, merchant wholesalers, and retailers. Both manufacturers (0.7%) and wholesalers (0.5%) inventories were announced prior to the release. Only retailer inventories, which were flat in February after increasing 0.3% in January, were unknown.
Bullion metals ended moderately higher on Monday, 14 April 2014 at Comex. Gold prices on Monday built on last week's gains to score their highest close in three weeks amid investor skittishness following the recent sharp declines in equities in the face of mounting tensions in Ukraine.
Gold for June delivery climbed $8.50, or 0.6%, to settle at $1,327.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. May silver tacked on 6 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $20.01 an ounce.
Crude oil futures edged higher on Monday, 14 April 2014 at Nymex in New York to finish at a six-week high, as growing tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine fed concerns over global oil supplies. Prices had found some added support after data showed U.S. retail sales jumped a stronger-than-expected 1.1% in March. Crude oil for May delivery edged up by 31 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $104.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Indian ADRs ended higher on Monday. In the IT space, Infosys rose 4.57% at $55.58 and Wipro gained 0.15% at $13.22. In the banking space, ICICI Bank jumped 1.41% at $43.28 and HDFC Bank added 0.68% at $41.39. In the other sectors, Tata Motors advanced 1.41% at $38.30 and Dr Reddy's Laboratories was down 0.07% at $42.57.
Participation was below average as less than 680 million shares changed hands at the New York Stock Exchange.
Tomorrow, March CPI (consensus 0.1%) and the Empire Manufacturing Survey (consensus 7.5) for April will be released at 8:30 ET, while the February Net Long-Term TIC Flows report will cross the wires at 9:00 ET. The day's data will be topped off with the NAHB Housing Market Index (consensus 50) for April, which will be released at 10:00 ET.
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