“This is an emergency of a nature that we haven’t really seen before,” Fed Chair Powell says about the coronavirus crisis. “At the beginning of this, my colleagues and I really saw that we needed to be using our tools to their fullest extent.”
The S&P 500 moved higher in the final hour of trading after President Donald Trump made no mention of tariffs during his press conference on China. All the major averages ended the week higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average turning in its best week since early April.
The Nasdaq gained 1.29% on Friday for its fourth positive day in five and its best day since May 20For the month the Nasdaq gained 6.75%, its second straight positive monthThe Nasdaq is 43.1% above its 52-week low of 6,631.42 Seven out of 11 S&P 500 sectors were positive on Friday, led by health care, which gained 1.27%, and tech, which was up 1.18% All sectors finished the week higher, led by financials, which gained 6.58% in its best week since early April4:00 pm: Stocks end volatile session mixed The S&P 500 alternated between gains and losses during a volatile trading session, before ultimately finishing the week and the month on a high note, rising 0.48%. The Dow, on the other hand, couldn't hold onto its gain and finished the session down 17 points, or 0.07%. The Nasdaq was the relative outperformer, registering a gain of 1.3%. As tensions between the U.S. and China accelerate, some investor fears were assuaged after President Donald Trump made no mention of tariffs or sanctions during his press conference on Friday.The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF is up nearly 20% for the month, and on track for its second straight month of gains. This month's winners include KB Home and Toll Brothers, which have gained 30% and 36%, respectively. For the quarter, the ITB has gained more than 50%, putting it on track for its best quarter in history going back to the fund's inception in 2006.Chip stocks rallied in the final hour of trading on Friday as President Donald Trump made no mention of new tariffs. The VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF and iShares PHLX Semiconductor ETF each gained more than 2%, with all components within the funds trading higher. The sector is especially sensitive to U.S.-China trade tensions.The S&P 500 and Dow pushed into positive territory after President Donald Trump did not announce new tariffs on China or any changes to the phase one trade deal between the two countries. The Dow last traded 75 points, or 0.3%, higher, while the S&P 500 was up 0.5%. The Nasdaq extended its gain to rise roughly 1% for the session.3:01 pm: Trump terminates relationship with WHO, says administration will study Chinese stocks President Donald Trump said in a press conference on Friday that he is terminating the relationship between the U.S. and World Health Organization, accusing the organization of being protective of China during the coronavirus pandemic.Trump also announced that a working group from his administration will study Chinese companies that are listed on U.S. stock exchanges. "Investment firms should not be subjecting their clients to the hidden and undue risks associated with financing Chinese companies that do not play by the same rules," Trump said.The Dow and the S&P 500 trimmed their earlier losses ahead of President Donald Trump's press conference on China after Bloomberg News reported that Trump was not going to pull out of the phase one trade deal. The Dow was down roughly 130 points, or 0.5%, while the S&P 500 was down 0.2%. The Nasdaq was the leading index, rising 0.5%.shares were briefly halted on Friday as the company announced further reductions to its dividend. The quarterly payout will now be 1 cent per share, down from 11 cents per share that the company previously announced on March 10. The decision comes amid a tough environment for exploration and production companies as oil prices have plummeted to historic lows. After trading resumed, Occidental shares slid more than 3%, bringing the 2020 loss to 68%. —Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, thinks stocks could hold in a sideways pattern for a while after their massive run-up from the lows. "It's reasonable to expect a period of consolidation, particularly given the strong," said Sandven. The S&P 500 has surged more than 30% since hitting a March 23 low as investors price in an economic recovery following the coronavirus pandemic. However, Sandven thinks fundamentals have to "catch up a bit with prices," adding: "There's still going to be, in our view, a fair amount of uncertainty and volatility until we get to a path of normalcy." —The White House confirmed President Donald Trump's news conference regarding China will take place at 2 p.m. in the Rose Garden. Earlier this week, China approved a national security bill for Hong Kong that experts warn could endanger the city's "one country, two systems" principle.12:01 pm: Markets at midday: Dow and S&P 500 fall, but headed for weekly and monthly gains Around midday, the Dow and S&P 500 traded slightly lower ahead of a key news conference from President Donald Trump. The Dow fell 180 points, or 0.7%, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.4%. Despite those losses, both averages were up sharply for the week and the month. —Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said in a webinar event for Princeton University that the central bank would have the tools for more monetary assistance if the country is hit by a second wave of Covid-19. "We of course would continue to react. We're not close to any limits that we might have," Powell said. Powell also said that risks to inflation were to the downside. —Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank was "days away" from making its first loans to medium-sized businesses. Those loans are part of the Fed's $600 billion "Main Street" Lending Facility, which is designed to help businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic. "It's far and away the biggest challenge of any facilities we have set up," Powell said. —"The Fed is strongly committed to using our tools to do whatever we can for as long as it takes to provide some relief and some stability now to support the recovery when it comes, and to try to avoid the longer-run damage to peoples' lives through long unemployment or to their businesses through unnecessary insolvencies," Powell said. —Speaking at Princeton University on Friday, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the coronavirus represents an emergency in a class of its own. "This is an emergency of a nature that we haven't really seen before," the central bank chief said. Powell added that the response from the Federal Reserve had to be unique to combat the economic devastation wrought by the pandemic. "We crossed a lot of red lines that had not been crossed before, and I'm very comfortable that this is a situation where you do that and then you figure it out afterwards," he said. –Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is set to speak at 11 am ET virtually in a Princeton University event with Alan Blinder, former Fed vice chairman. Investors will pore through Powell's comments for clues about where the economy stands amid the coronavirus pandemic and the measures the Fed could take to further support the economy.10:51 am: Cramer says without more coronavirus stimulus the stock market rally may run out of steam
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