Yahoo Finance Stock market today: Dow adds 300 points as bank rally fueled bets on Fed move
By Liz Moyer
Investing.com -- U.S. stocks ended higher as a rally in bank stocks put aside worries that the trouble in the banking sector would wind up becoming a contagion.
At 16:05 ET (20:05 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 336 points or 1.1%, while the S&P 500 was up 1.7% and the NASDAQ Composite was up 2.1%.
Also lifting the mood in the markets: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a 0.4% rise in the consumer price index in February from the previous month, cooling slightly from January’s reading. On an annual basis, inflation rose 6%, also cooling from the prior reading. Core prices, which exclude food and fuel, rose 0.5% from the prior month, slightly more than expected.
That is leading traders to put more bets on a smaller rate hike by the Federal Reserve next week.
Most futures traders are expecting a quarter of a point rate hike next week, though 26% of traders are betting on the Fed to pause rate hikes, according to CME’s FedWatch tool.
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (NASDAQ:SIVB) over the weekend rippled through bank stocks on fears of a wider contagion. Regulators have stepped in to backstop depositors of SVB and Signature Bank (NASDAQ:SBNY), which also shut down.
Shares of large regional banks sank on Monday but were rebounding on Tuesday. KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) closed up 7%. Comerica Inc (NYSE:CMA) was up almost 4%, while PacWest Bancorp (NASDAQ:PACW) was up almost 34%. First Republic Bank (NYSE:FRC) was up 27%.
Stocks’ afternoon climb was temporarily interrupted by reports a Russian fighter jet struck the propeller of an American surveillance drone over the Black Sea, causing U.S. forces to down the drone in international waters.
Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) is cutting another 10,000 workers, incurring charges of as much as $5 billion, and warned about the possibility of economic uncertainty sticking around. Shares rose 7%.
Shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE:AMC) sank 15% after shareholders of the largest movie theater chain voted to approve a reverse stock split and the conversion of APE equity units into common shares. The matter is also before a Delaware Chancery Court judge.
Related Articles
Stock market today: Dow adds 300 points as bank rally fueled bets on Fed move
Goldman Sachs bought SVB's bond portfolio, lender says
Investors tiptoe back into US bank stocks, regulators probe SVB collapse
