WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After failing to sustain an early move to the upside, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Thursday. The major averages spent a good part of the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
Eventually, the major averages closed in positive territory but well off their best levels of the day. The Dow rose 43.47 points or 0.2 percent to 25,169.88, the Nasdaq climbed 20.41 points or 0.3 percent to 7,567.72 and the S&P 500 edged up 5.84 points or 0.2 percent to 2,788.86.
The early strength on Wall Street partly reflected bargain hunting following recent weakness, with the Dow bouncing off its lowest closing level in well over three months.
An early rebound by treasury yields also contributed to the upward move, as a recent decline by yields has led to concerns about the outlook for the economy and the possibility of a recession.
Buying interest waned shortly after the start of trading, however, as traders seemed reluctant to get back into the markets due to lingering concerns about the U.S.-China trade dispute.
Amid a continued escalation of the rhetoric, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Hanhui accused the U.S. of 'economic terrorism' by raising tariffs on Chinese goods.
'We oppose a trade war but are not afraid of a trade war,' Zhang said. 'This kind of deliberately provoking trade disputes is naked economic terrorism, economic homicide, economic bullying.'
A report from Bloomberg News indicating China has put purchases of U.S. soybeans on hold has added to concerns about a trade war.
Treasuries also turned higher over the course of the trading session, contributing to a notable downturn by yields.
On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing a modest uptick in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended May 25th.
The report said initial jobless claims edged up to 215,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's revised level of 212,000.
A separate report from the Commerce Department showed U.S. economic growth in the first quarter accelerated by slightly less than initially estimated.
The Commerce Department said real gross domestic product surged up by 3.1 percent in the first quarter, reflecting a slight downward from revision from the previously reported 3.2 percent jump.
The downwardly revised increase in GDP, which matched economist estimates, still represented a notable acceleration from the 2.2 percent growth seen in the fourth quarter of 2018.
Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing pending home sales unexpectedly pulled back in the month of April.
NAR said its pending home sales index tumbled by 1.5 percent to 104.3 in April after surging up by 3.9 percent to an upwardly revised 105.9 in March.
The pullback came as a surprise to economists, who had expected pending home sales to climb by 0.9 percent compared to the 3.8 percent jump originally reported for the previous month.
Sector News
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.
Energy stocks showed a significant move to the downside, however, with a steep drop by the price of crude oil weighing on the sector.
Crude for July delivery plunged $2.22 to $56.59 a barrel following the release of a report showing a smaller than expected weekly drop in crude oil inventories.
Reflecting the weakness in the energy sector, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index tumbled by 2 percent, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index slumped by 1.7 and the NYSE Arca Oil Index fell by 1.3 percent.
Banking stocks also came under pressure over the course of the trading session, dragging the KBW Bank Index down by 1.3 percent.
On the other hand, gold stocks moved higher along with the price of the precious metal. With gold for August delivery rising $6.10 to $1,292.40 an ounce, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index jumped by 1.8 percent.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index fell by 0.3 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid by 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index, French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index all rose by 0.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries ended the day slightly higher after recovering from early weakness. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, edged down by nearly a basis point to 2.227 percent.
Looking Ahead
News of the trade front is likely to remain in focus on Friday, although traders are also likely to keep an eye on reports on personal income and spending, consumer sentiment, and Chicago-area business activity.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2019 AFX News
