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US stocks rise on economic data, corporate results

written by Bella Palmer
us-stocks

The S&P 500 and Dow each rallied to record levels, with the latter moving past the 34,000 level

Stocks traded higher on Friday in another record-setting day on Wall Street, with a batch of stronger-than-expected economic data and corporate earnings results helping fuel a risk rally.

The S&P 500 and Dow each rallied to record levels, with the latter extending gains well beyond the 34,000 level.

The Nasdaq ended a choppy session slightly higher, with technology stocks steadying after recent gains.

Treasury yields ticked up on Friday morning after retreating on Thursday even amid a batch of estimates-topping economic data. Retail sales increased in March by the most since May 2020, fuelled by a combination of stimulus spending and broadening business reopening as new weekly employment claims dropped. Q1 corporate earnings have largely topped already lofty estimates with the big banks posting better-than-expected results.

Morgan Stanley’s shares declined 2.6% despite topping analysts’ expectations for first quarter earnings on the back of better-than-expected trading and investment banking results. The major U.S. bank reported earnings of $2.19 per share on revenue of $15.72 billion.

Meanwhile trading platforms Robinhood and Coinbase grabbed the top two spots in Apple’s App Store this week as Americans turn their attention to stock and cryptocurrency markets.

According to sources, Robinhood notched the top spot on Friday, followed by the crypto trading platform Coinbase. TikTok was third. The surge in popularity comes at times when Coinbase has debuted on Nasdaq and bitcoin topped $64,000 for the first time.

The surge in popularity underlines a boom in retail trading during the pandemic and “meme stock” culture around names like GameStop.

Typically, social media and entertainment options such as TikTok, Reddit, and Instagram are the top apps.

Robinhood, which shut down the buy-side of certain stocks during the height of the GameStop frenzy, saw blowback on social media, and its CEO was later called to testify in front of Congress. But Robinhood still added an estimated 3 million customers in January alone, according to estimates from JMP Securities.

Important:

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Please remember that financial investments may rise or fall and past performance does not guarantee future performance in respect of income or capital growth; you may not get back the amount you invested.

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