Late rally lifts US stocks on Friday

Consumer discretionary, technology and utilities sectors lead rally

A late-afternoon rally on Wall Street led by tech and small companies sent U.S. stocks into positive territory on Friday, 27 June 2014. Friday's modest gains capped weekly losses on the S&P 500 and Dow Jones. The Nasdaq Composite, which outperformed other markets on Friday, recorded a second consecutive weekly gain. Market attributed increased buying in the afternoon to the end-of-quarter rebalancing of portfolios by institutional investors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 6.36 points to 16,852.49. The weekly loss was 0.6%. The Nasdaq Composite ended the day up 18.88 points, or 0.4% at 4,397.93. It gained 0.7% over the past week. The S&P closed 3.90 points, or 0.2%, higher at 1,961.01. The index fell 0.1% for the week.

Seven out of ten economic sectors ended in the green led by consumer discretionary, technology and utilities sectors. Energy, healthcare and materials sectors were the laggards.

Among major stocks under focus, Nike, the maker of sporting apparel and gear reported stronger-than-expected earnings for the fiscal fourth quarter, as revenue grew across almost all its main markets. Shares rose 1.1%. DuPont tumbled 3.3% after lowering its Q1 and full-year guidance.

Large cap components contributed to the outperformance with Apple and Microsoft advancing close to 1.2% apiece.

Economic data at Wall Street was limited to the Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey for June, which increased to 82.5 in its final reading for June. That was up from a preliminary report of 81.2 and up from 81.9 in May. The consensus expected the Index to increase to 81.7. The preliminary June report initially showed a decline in confidence. That didn't jive with the big improvements in equity prices and employment conditions. However, the final reading brought the Consumer Sentiment Index in-line with the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, which increased to 85.2 in June from 82.2 in May.

In overnight news, there was more dour economic news coming out of the European Union Friday. The European Commission's Economic Sentiment Indicator came in at 102.0 in June from 102.6 in May. Forecasts were for a figure of 103.0. This reading comes after the EU made moves in early June to boost economic activity, including further easing of EU monetary policy. The report also said EU consumers expect inflation to continue to be very low.

It was mixed finish for bullions on Friday, 27 June 2014. Gold futures settled higher on Friday, recovering a little from the prior day's decline to tally a mild weekly advance their fourth in a row. Gold for August delivery added $3, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,320 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. For the week, prices were up around 0.3% adding to 5.5% climb scored over the previous three weeks. July silver fell 3 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $21.08 an ounce, trading around 0.6% higher for the week. September silver, which is now the most actively traded contract, ended almost 3 cents lower at $21.13 an ounce.

Crude Oil futures suffered a second straight weekly loss on Friday,27 June 2014 as worries over the fate of Iraq's oil exports faded and traders weighed healthy domestic U.S. crude supplies. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil for August delivery fell 10 cents, or 0.1%, to settle at $105.74 a barrel. Tracking the most-active contracts, oil saw a 1% weekly decline, its second in a row.

On Monday, the Chicago PMI report for June (consensus 61.0) will be released at 9:45 ET and the Pending Home Sales report for May (consensus +1.5%) will cross the wires at 10:00 ET.

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