Final hours! Save up to 55% OFF InvestingProCLAIM SALE

Dow Hits Record High, led by Jump in Energy as Cold Snap Sweeps Across U.S.

Published 02/16/2021, 03:27 PM
Updated 02/16/2021, 04:01 PM
© Reuters.
US500
-
DJI
-
BAC
-
MSFT
-
JPM
-
SPY
-
GOOGL
-
QCOM
-
AAPL
-
NVDA
-
ARM
-
OXY
-
WFC
-
MRO
-
APA
-
CL
-
NG
-
VX
-
UAL
-
NRG
-
IXIC
-
CUK
-
CCL
-
US10YT=X
-
ENPH
-
RCL
-
CBOE
-
ALLE
-
GOOG
-
PLTR
-

By Yasin Ebrahim

Investing.com – The Dow closed at another record high Tuesday, led by a rally in energy stocks following a cold snap across parts of the U.S. and ongoing investor optimism over the economic recovery as Covid-19 infections continue to fall.  

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.20%, or 62 points, though had gained about 150 points intraday to hit record high of 31,608.63. The S&P 500 was down 0.08%, and had also climbed to record high intraday. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.34%. 

Energy stocks jumped more than 2% as a "deep freeze impacting large portions of the country and supply disruptions sent U.S. crude prices settled above $60 a barrel for the first time in more than a year," Stifel said, while natural gas prices jumped 6%.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY), Apache (NASDAQ:APA) and Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) rallied sharply, with the latter up more than 6%.

Financials were also in favor as bank stocks continued to benefit from the melt up in U.S. government bond yields amid falling Covid-19 infections and a step up in vaccinations. The U.S. Treasury 10-year yield topped 1.300% for the first time since Feb. 27. 

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) climbed more than 2%, while Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) gained more than 3%.

Higher interest rates are seen as a boon for banks, boosting net interest margin – the difference between the interest income generated by banks and the amount of interest they paid out.

The growing expectations for a further round of fiscal stimulus that could include $14 billion funding to support the aviation industry boosted airlines, with United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) leading the gains, up more than 3%.

Technology, meanwhile, was roughly flat, paced by weakness in Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL).

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) jumped to record intraday highs as the stock continued its move higher following stronger-than-expected quarterly results, released earlier this month.  

On the earnings front, Palantir Technologies (NYSE:PLTR) was in focus as the company reported fourth quarter loss that sent its share price down more 13%. The decline, however, comes after shares of business analytics company jumped more than 200% since its October lows.

The mixed day for the US stocks comes as volatility return, with the S&P 500 VIX Futures - a gauge of uncertainty - jumped nearly 7%.

In other news, NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA)'s plans to acquire chipmaker ARM Holdings (LON:ARM) in a $40 billion deal hit a snag as the The Federal Trade Commission is reportedly looking into deal following protests by ARM's licensees including Google, Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT).

Top S&P 500 Gainers and Losers Today:

Carnival (NYSE:CUK) Corporation (NYSE:CCL), Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL), Cboe Global Markets (NYSE:CBOE) among the top S&P 500 gainers for the session.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG), Allegion (NYSE:ALLE), Enphase Energy (NASDAQ:ENPH) were among the worst S&P 500 performers of the session.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.