Stocks Close Moderately Higher As Trump Becomes President - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After moving to the upside early in the session, stocks gave back some ground over the course of the trading day on Friday but managed to remain mostly positive. With the upward move, the Dow snapped a five-session losing streak.

The major averages finished the day in positive territory but off their highs of the session. The Dow advanced 94.85 points or 0.5 percent to 19,827.25, the Nasdaq rose 15.25 points or 0.3 percent to 5,555.33 and the S&P 500 climbed 7.62 points or 0.3 percent to 2,271.31.

Despite the gains on the day, the major averages moved lower for the week. The Dow and the S&P 500 both dipped by 0.3 percent, while the S&P 500 edged down by 0.1 percent.

Bargain hunting contributed to the initial strength on Wall Street, although traders seemed focused on President Donald Trump's inaugural address after he was officially sworn in as the 45th president.

Trump remained light on policy details in his remarks but pledged to lead an administration that puts America first.

The speech hewed closely to the themes of Trump's presidential campaign, offering a populist message and promising to solve the many problems he sees facing the nation.

Trump touted his plan to boost infrastructure spending, which a new Gallup poll showed Americans think is his most important campaign promise to keep.

The president's remarks have been described as protectionist, as he lamented U.S. policies that have enriched foreign industry and subsidized the armies of other countries at the expense of America's industry and military.

He argued that this has ripped the wealth of the middle class from their homes and redistributed it all across the world.

"But that is the past. And now, we are looking only to the future," Trump said. "We assembled here today are issuing a new decree to be heard in every city, in every foreign capital, and in every hall of power."

"From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land," he added. "From this day forward, it's going to be only America first."

Trump concluded his relatively brief remarks by reiterating his frequent campaign pledge to "Make America Great again."

Sector News

Airline stocks move significantly higher over the course of the trading session, resulting in a 1.5 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.

Southwest Airlines (LUV) and United Continental (UAL) turned in two of the airline sector's best performances on the day.

Considerable strength was also visible among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. With the gain, the index reached its best closing level in almost a month.

Skyworks Solutions (SWKS) posted a standout gain after the wireless handset chip supplier reported better than expected first quarter results and provided upbeat guidance. The company also announced a $500 million stock buyback.

Oil service, gold and electronic storage stocks also saw notable strength on the day, while most of the other major sectors showed more modest moves.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.3 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped by 0.7 percent.

The major European markets also ended the day mixed. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index rose by 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

In the bond, treasuries closed roughly flat after recovering from an early move to the downside. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, inched up by less than a basis point to 2.467 percent after reaching a high of 2.513 percent.

Looking Ahead

Next week's trading may be impacted by reaction to the latest batch of economic data, including reports on new and existing home sales, durable goods orders, and fourth quarter GDP.

Traders are also likely to keep an eye on any significant developments in Washington as Trump begins his first full week as president.

On the earnings front, 3M (MMM), McDonald's (MCD), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Boeing (BA), AT&T (T), Ford (F), Intel (INTC), Microsoft (MSFT), and Chevron (CVX) are among a slew of companies due to report their quarterly results next week.