Apple in focus as stocks rally to kick of November
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U.S. stocks rallied across the board for a third session and on the first day of November after a scary October which was the worst month for U.S. stocks in seven years.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44782 | -128.65 | -0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6047.15 | +14.77 | +0.24% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19403.947849 | +185.78 | +0.97% |
On Thursday, the tech heavy Nasdaq paced the gains as investors focused on Apple earnings. After the bell, the world's most valuable company reported record profits and revenues which exceeded analyst estimates. However, the forecast for the key holiday selling season fell short of some expectations and shares fell in extended trading.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 239.59 | +2.26 | +0.95% |
9 of the S&P’s top 10 sectors rallied led by materials and consumer discretionary. Utilities, a traditional defensive play, saw a modest pullback. Semiconductor stocks saw a nice pop with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index saw its biggest percentage gain since August of 2015.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:SOX | PHLX SEMICONDUCTOR | 4926.559631 | +73.55 | +1.52% |
Gold jumped 1.9 percent to $1,238.60 an ounce. Silver soared 3.5 percent to $14.78 an ounce. Copper gained 2.4 percent to $2.72 a pound. The World Gold Council reported that the yellow metal saw the biggest buying boom in the 3Q since 2015.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GLD | SPDR GOLD SHARES TRUST - USD ACC | 245.59 | +2.10 | +0.86% |
The first trading day of the month was a welcome event for investors after stocks fell sharply from early October through the last few days of the month, a skid that briefly wiped out their gains for the year. After a rally over the last two days, the S&P 500 is up 2.3 percent in 2018.
During the sell-off, high-growth companies like technology and industrial firms and smaller, more U.S.-focused stocks were hit especially hard as investors worried about various factors that could slow their growth and their profits. Those included the U.S.-China trade fight, rising interest rates that could make it more expensive to borrow money, and higher costs for fuel and other necessities.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP