Closing Recap 

U.S. stocks surged for a third consecutive day, with the S&P 500 clearing key resistance levels led by a rally in technology shares as earnings took center stage; gold rebounded strongly, oil gained, while the dollar and Treasury yields fell. 

Key Takeaways 

• Strong Rally Continues: Major indices posted significant gains for the third straight day, with the S&P 500 breaking above recent highs. 
• Focus Shifts to Earnings: With tariff headlines relatively subdued, investor attention turned more towards corporate earnings results and outlooks. 
• Tariff Backdrop Quieter: China called for the cancellation of U.S. tariffs; Trump hinted at ongoing talks but also criticized China regarding Boeing/Fentanyl. 
• Economic Data Mixed: Durable Goods orders surged unexpectedly, while jobless claims remained stable and Existing Home Sales weakened further. 
• Gold Rebounds Strongly: Gold prices recovered a significant portion of yesterday’s losses amid persistent underlying uncertainty. 
• Oil Gains: Crude oil prices edged higher. 
• Dollar & Yields Fall: The U.S. dollar resumed its decline, and Treasury yields dropped notably across the curve. 

Market Overview 

U.S. equity markets extended their powerful recovery for a third consecutive session, climbing steadily throughout the day and closing near the highs. The S&P 500 achieved significant technical milestones, breaking above resistance levels from the prior day and the volatile highs seen on April 9th. Today’s gains were broad-based, with ten of eleven S&P sectors advancing, but leadership clearly came from the technology sector. Semiconductor stocks (SOX index) surged over 5%, and mega-cap tech names like Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, and crucially, Google (reporting after the close), all posted strong gains. 

Index	Up/Down	% Change	Last
DJ Industrials	486.83	0.0123	40093
S&P 500	108.92	0.0203	5484
Nasdaq	457.99	0.0274	17166
Russell 2000	38.45	0.02	1957

The market appeared to shift its focus more towards the burgeoning Q1 earnings season, perhaps finding relief in the relative lack of new, aggressive tariff headlines compared to recent weeks. So far, the earnings season has been better than feared, with 74% of the 157 S&P 500 companies reported beating expectations, supporting analyst estimates for solid year-over-year growth. While trade news was quieter, it wasn’t absent. Beijing called for the U.S. to cancel tariffs following recent signals of potential de-escalation from Washington officials. President Trump hinted that some talks with China might have begun but also maintained pressure via tweets concerning Boeing and Fentanyl imports. Overall, the market seemed content to focus on the positive earnings narrative and the lack of immediate negative trade catalysts.

Economic Data

Economic data yesterday offered a mixed picture, with a surprisingly strong surge in durable goods orders contrasting with continued weakness in housing. 

• Weekly Jobless Claims: Rose slightly to 222,000 (in line with consensus) from 216,000 prior, remaining near historically low levels. Continuing claims decreased to 1.841 million. 
• Durable Goods Orders (Mar): Surged +9.2% month-over-month, massively exceeding the +2.0% consensus, driven largely by defense and transportation orders. Ex-transportation orders were flat (missing +0.3% est.), and core capital goods orders (nondefense ex-aircraft) rose just +0.1%. 
• Existing Home Sales (Mar): Fell -5.9% year-over-year to a 4.02 million unit annualized rate, below the 4.13M consensus and down from February’s 4.27M rate. Inventory ticked up to 4.0 months’ supply. 

Commodities, Currencies, and Treasuries 

Gold prices staged a strong recovery after yesterday’s sharp sell-off, with June futures rising $54.50 (+1.65%) to settle at $3,348.60/oz. The rebound reflected persistent underlying concerns about trade tensions and geopolitical instability, aided by a weaker U.S. dollar. Crude oil prices edged higher, with WTI gaining $0.52 (+0.84%) to settle at $62.79/bbl, finding support potentially from the positive risk sentiment and specific inventory dynamics, despite ongoing demand concerns related to trade. The U.S. dollar index resumed its decline, falling 0.5% as the Euro strengthened. Treasury yields fell notably across the curve, reversing some of the recent spike. The 10-year yield dropped about 8 basis points to finish near 4.305%, while the 2-year yield also declined significantly.

Asset	Up/Down	Unit / % Change	Last
WTI Crude	0.52	USD/bbl	62.79
Brent	0.43	USD/bbl	66.55
Gold	54.5	USD/oz	3348.6
EUR/USD	0.0069	USD	1.1383
USD/JPY	-0.74	JPY	142.7
10-Year Note	-0.082	%	0.04305

Looking Ahead 

Market focus remains split between hope for continued positive earnings results and the ever-present risk of renewed trade tensions. Key economic data releases next week, including GDP and the Fed’s preferred PCE inflation measure, will also be important market drivers. The market will look to see if the current positive momentum can be sustained or if underlying anxieties resurface.