Major Averages Remain Firmly Positive In Mid-Day Trading

(RTTNews) - After moving sharply higher early in the session, stocks continue to see substantial strength in mid-day trading on Monday. With the jump on the day, the major averages continue to recover from the sell-off seen last Wednesday.

Currently, the major averages are hovering near their best levels of the day. The Dow is up 258.25 points or 1 percent at 26,144.26, the Nasdaq is up 117.69 points or 1.5 percent at 8,013.68 and the S&P 500 is up 35.51 points or 1.2 percent at 2,924.19.

Continued optimism about new global stimulus generated initial buying interest after the People's Bank of China said it would use market-based reform methods to help lower real lending rates and prop up a slowing economy.

News that President Donald Trump's administration is once again delaying restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei has also contributed to the strength on Wall Street.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross revealed the news in an appearance on the Fox Business Network, announcing a "temporary general license" set to expire on Monday will be extended for another 90 days.

The move will allow Huawei to continue purchasing supplies from U.S. companies despite being placed on an economic blacklist back in May.

"There is another 90 days for the U.S. telecom companies, some of the rural companies are dependent on wild ways," Ross said. "So we're giving them a little more time to wean themselves off. But there are no specific licenses being granted for anything."

The upward momentum also comes after Trump's economic advisers took to the Sunday talk shows to downplay concerns about a possible recession.

Trump himself told reporters that he does not foresee an economic downturn even after last week's yield curve inversion, which is widely seen as an early recession indicator.

"I don't think we're having a recession," Trump said. "We're doing tremendously well. Our consumers are rich. I gave a tremendous tax cut and they're loaded up with money."

Sector News

Oil service stocks continue to turn in some of the market's best performances on the day, extending the rebound seen in the previous session.

Reflecting the continued strength in the sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index has surged up by 3.8 percent, climbing further off last Thursday's eighteen-year closing low.

The rally by oil service stocks comes amid an increase by the price of crude oil, with crude for September delivery climbing $0.81 to $55.68 a barrel.

The news about the reprieve for Huawei has also contributed to considerable strength among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 2.1 percent jump by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.

Natural gas, computer hardware and networking stocks are also seeing considerable strength, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index surged up by 2.1 percent.

The major European markets also showed strong moves to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index jumped by 1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index both shot up by 1.3 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries are extending the modest pullback seen last Friday. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 4.7 basis points at 1.586 percent.