US stocks close mixed as investors rotate out of technology and stay-at-home stocks

4:05 pm: US equities end mix on rotation 

US stocks closed mixed again as investors rotated out of technology and stay-at-home stocks and piled into cyclical stocks that benefit from a recovering economy.   

On the day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 23 points, or 0.08%, to 29,397. The Dow had been on tear for the last two days to mark its best performance in months.  

The S&P 500 rose 0.77% to 3,572 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which has been lagging recently, jumped 2.01% to 11,786.

12:12 pm: Dow seesaws its way into positive territory

The Dow was up, down and up again, improving 68 points, 0.2%, around noon. The Nasdaq Composite gained 203 points, 1.75%, to 11,756, and the S&P 500 was up nearly 28 points, 0.8%, to 3,573.5.

Investors jumped back in on tech shares that took a hit earlier this week. Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) each found themselves up more than 2.7%.

“Once again, the mood is mixed in the US as the S&P 500 and NASDAQ 100 have rebounded from recent weakness, while the Dow Jones and the Russell 2000 are offside because of profit taking,” CMC Markets UK analyst David Madden wrote. “Traditional stocks like oil, mining, construction, retail and banking have the most to gain from a vaccine, while tech stocks would probably suffer a little.” 

10:15 am: Proactive North America headlines:

Endeavour Mining Corporation (TSE:EDV) (OTCQX:EDVMF) (FRA:E5Y1) confirms that it is in discussions with Teranga regarding a potential merger of equals

NexTech AR Solutions Corp (OTCQB:NEXCF) (CSE:NTAR) (FRA:N29) virtual event platform InfernoAR selected by Canadian Electricity Association to host annual summit

Humanigen Inc (NASDAQ:HGEN) (FRA:0KB2) ends 3Q with $91.4M following positive COVID-19 trial results

CytoDyn Inc (OTCQB:CYDY) gets $25M in convertible debt deal to fund license applications, coronavirus trials for leronlimab

Vuzix Corporation (NASDAQ:VUZI) (FRA:V7XN) receives multiple follow-on orders for its M400 Smart Glasses from Dutch medical services company 1Minuut Innovation

Co-Diagnostics Inc (NASDAQ:CODX) (FRA:C97) says its CoPrimers proved effective in COVID-19 Saliva PCR Tests without sample extraction

Mawson Gold Limited (TSE:MAW) (OTCPINK:MWSNF) (FRA:MXR) finds high grade gold at Joki East as Finnish project moves towards resource expansion

Revive Therapeutics Ltd (CSE:RVV) (OTCMKTS:RVVTF) says development milestone achieved for its orally dissolvable thin film strip for psilocybin

HealthLynked Corp (OTCQB:HLYK) appoints Arthrex Vice President Dan Hall as board director

GGX Gold Corp (CVE:GGX) (OTCQB:GGXXF) (FRA:3SR) set for further exploration at Gold Drop after discovery of Perky and Lively veins

9.40am: US stocks head higher

Wall Street has started Wednesday’s session on the front foot, with optimism over a potential coronavirus vaccine continuing to drive equities higher on Veterans Day.

Shortly after the opening bell in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.37% to 29,539 while the S&P 500 climbed 0.55% to 3,564 and the Nasdaq was up 0.87% at 11,653.

However, the positivity on Wall Street may be masking a less than rosy picture for the US economy, with mortgage application data for the week to November 6 showing a 0.5% week-on-week decline compared to a 3.8% rise the week before.

The sharp reversal may highlight the ongoing need for new government stimulus in the US economy, a matter that appears to have fallen by the wayside somewhat amid the fallout over the US election last Tuesday.

7.45am: Wall Street to start higher as vaccine optimism persists

The main indices on Wall Street look set to start Wednesday’s session in the green as traders in New York continue to cling to optimism over a potential coronavirus vaccine.

Spread-betters are expecting the Dow Jones Industrial Average to open around 195 points higher, while the S&P 500 is expected to rise 30 points and the Nasdaq is predicted to jump 133 points at the opening bell.

Speaking of vaccines, pharma firm Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) may be back in focus for traders following news that the European Union has agreed to buy up to 300mln doses of its vaccine which it has developed in partnership with German group BioNTech.

The company has said that deliveries of the vaccine could begin by the end of the year, provided it secures approval from the European Medicines Agency.

“The vaccine news feels like a real game-changer for these markets. The first time in months that optimism is driven by the prospect of permanent economic reopenings and a return to normality, as opposed to emergency stimulus measures and a booming pandemic-proof tech sector. It’s far healthier for these markets in the long term”, said OANDA’s Craig Erlam.

“Huge hurdles remain, not least final approval for the vaccine once all of the data is properly analysed. But the recent development was really significant. The last few days has felt like an enormous rush of relief through the markets rather the usual FOMO surge. With other vaccine candidates in late-stage trials, more good news could follow in the final weeks of the year which could ensure that these markets end of a high. It’s far too early to throw terms like Santa rally around but December may be a very good month if certain things fall into place as they very well could”, he added.

Four things to watch for on Wednesday:

• Oil stocks may be in focus following a rise in crude prices. WTI crude is currently trading at around US$42.51 a barrel, it highest level since August, while Brent is at US$44.79, a level not reaches since early September
• There aren’t many big corporate names in the results calendar, although US gases and chemicals group Air Products & Chemicals Inc (NYSE:APD) may provide some flavour with its fourth quarter earnings
• While the equities markets will still be opening on Veteran’s Day, investors will be keeping clear of the bond market, which will be closed until Thursday
• Politics will also continue to rumble in the background as the litigation over the US election results by the Trump campaign continues. However with the claims mostly baseless it remains unclear how exactly the President plans to pull some kind of victory from his defeat at the ballot box

Story by ProactiveInvestors