US stocks end with good gains

Tech shares rebound

US stocks stumbled out of the gate on Tuesday, 11 September 2018 but strengthened as the day wore on, ending higher for the second day in a row. Stocks ended higher on Tuesday led by a bounceback in tech shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced around 114 points, or 0.4%, to finish near 25,971. The S&P 500 added around 11 points, or 0.4%, to end near 2,888. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index climbed around 48 points, or 0.6%, to close around 7,972.

Tech and telecoms were the main driver of the rally in equities. Apple, Facebook and Microsoft all ended higher by more than 1%. Energy stocks also surged on the back of higher oil prices.

Tuesday's slow start came after China told the World Trade Organization (WTO) that it wanted to impose sanctions on the U.S., citing Washington's non-compliance with a ruling in a dispute over U.S. dumping duties. That headline weighed on the futures market, but stocks immediately started moving higher after the opening bell.

Market participants are focused on a mix of trade headlines and economic data, as the talks with Canada on the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement are in full swing. Reports also said the U.S. and European Union may be getting closer to a trade agreement after recent meetings.

With trade issues and the Federal Reserve's interest-rate picture in play, the ICE U.S. Dollar Index traded nearly unchanged at 95.178 as gold prices settled. The index traded off the days high of 95.353 and moved down 0.2% week to date.

U.S. data released Tuesday showed that the number of domestic job openings climbed to a record 6.94 million in July. Upbeat data tends to support the Fed's plans for further interest-rate increases this year.

U.S. Treasuries moved notably lower on Tuesday, pushing yields higher across the curve. The yield on the Fed-sensitive 2-yr note jumped four basis points to 2.75% , its highest level in over a decade.

Bullion prices ended mixed again on Tuesday, 11 September 2018 at Comex. Gold shook off earlier weakness Tuesday to climb back above $1,200 an ounce and notch its first gain in three sessions as the dollar eased back from their best levels of the day. Silver fell.

December gold tacked on $2.40, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,202.20 an ounce following two sessions of losses in a row. It turned higher for the week, trading up about 0.2% from a week ago, but has lost about 9.8% year to date. December silver fell 2.8 cents, or 0.2%, to $14.153 an ounce.

Crude-oil futures rallied on Tuesday, 11 Sept 2018 finding support as a major hurricane approaching the U.S. East Coast boosted demand for fuel and threatened the flow of gasoline through a key pipeline. The U.S. government also cut its forecasts for domestic production and concerns continued to grow over the potential for tighter global supplies ahead of renewed sanctions on Iran.

October futures on West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. benchmark, rose $1.71, or 2.5%, to $69.25 a barrel. The settlement was the highest in a week. November Brent crude added $1.69, or 2.2%, to $79.06 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.

Traders continued to keep a close eye on Hurricane Florence as it approaches the U.S. East Coast. Authorities ordered widespread evacuations along the coasts of the Carolinas and Virginia. Concerns that Florence could weaken energy demand as the East Coast eventually recovers from the storm, contributed to a weaker tone for the U.S. benchmark on Monday.

Looking ahead, investors will receive the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, the August Producer Price Index, and the Fed's Beige Book for August on Wednesday.

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