All ten sectors end lower led by energy sector
U.S. stocks ended Monday's thinly traded session moderately lower on 11 May 2015, giving back some of the gains from Friday's post-jobs rally. Trading activity on Wall Street was lower than usual, with the total composite volume the fifth lowest this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 85.94 points, or 0.5%, to 18,105.17, with 24 of its 30 component finishing lower. The Nasdaq Composite ended the session off 9.98 points, or 0.2% at 4,993.57. The S&P 500 closed 10.77 points, or 0.5%, lower at 2,105.33.
All ten economic sectors posted losses. The energy sector was hit the hardest, falling more than 2%.
Friday's jobs report supported the view that the U.S. economy is on solid footing, but the data may not be strong enough to move up the timing of the first rate hike by the Federal Reserve in nearly a decade.
China's central bank lowered its lending and deposit rates by 0.25% each Monday, to 5.1% and 2.25% respectively. It was the third rate cut by China in six months. This is yet another monetary policy easing move by the People's Bank of China, in an effort to reinvigorate the world's second-largest economy. Asian stock markets were boosted on the surprise China rate cut. Despite the price weakness in metals today, this news is an overall bullish underlying factor for the precious metals markets and the entire raw commodity sector. China is the world's largest importer of raw commodities.
Meantime, Greece and European Union/International Monetary Fund negotiations on Greece's debt restructuring continued Monday, as Tuesday is the deadline for Greece to make a 750 million Euro payment to the IMF. The Euro currency was under pressure Monday due to worries Greece will default on this week's payment or future debt payments. Short-term Greece government bonds saw yields above 20% on Monday, which is not a good signal of European Union investor confidence in Greece surviving in its present form in the EU. Early on today, gold did see some slight safe-haven demand from the situation.
There wasn't any economic data of note out of the U.S. today, yet things will get more interesting on that front later in the week with the release of the April Retail Sales report on Wednesday, the April Producer Price Index on Thursday, and the April Industrial Production report on Friday.
Trading volume was light with just 680 million shares changing hands at the NYSE. That was approximately 14% below the volume seen in Friday's rally effort.
Bullion prices ended the U.S. day session with modest losses on Monday, 11 May 2015. Prices dropped due to a firmer U.S. dollar index and weaker crude oil prices. Gold futures settled lower on Monday, giving back much of what they lost in the previous session as the dollar strengthened against the euro, but investors kept an eye on protracted negotiations between Greece and its international creditors.
Gold for June delivery on Comex fell $5.90, or 0.5%, to settle at $1,183 an ounce after trading as low as $1,178. Prices had lost 0.6% on Friday. July silver ended lower by 15.1 cents, or 0.9%, to $16.314 an ounce.
Crude Oil futures settled lower on Monday, 11 May 2015 at Nymex lingering below $60 a barrel, as traders considered the outlook for crude demand after China stepped up efforts to boost its economy. Over the weekend, China, the world's second-largest consumer of oil, cut interest rates for the third time in six months in an effort to stimulate its economy.
June crude lost 14 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $59.25 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Nymex prices rose 0.4% last week. That was their eighth straight week of gains, based on the most-active contracts. Prices were up 25% in April.
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