Stocks Close Mostly Higher Ahead Of Next Week's Fed Meeting - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday, offsetting the pullback seen in the previous session. The gains on the day lifted the S&P 500 to a new record closing high, while the Nasdaq reached its best closing level of 2016.

The major averages finished the day moderately higher. The Dow rose 53.62 points or 0.3 percent to 18,570.85, the Nasdaq advanced 26.26 points or 0.5 percent to 5,100.16 and the S&P 500 climbed 9.86 points or 0.5 percent to 2,175.03.

With the rebound on the day, the major averages all moved higher for the week. While the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged up by 1.4 percent, the S&P 500 climbed by 0.6 percent and the Dow edged up by 0.3 percent.

The strength on the day came as traders reacted positively to some of the latest corporate results as the earnings season rolls on.

Nonetheless, trading activity remained relatively light amid the lack of major U.S. economic data due to be released on the day.

Traders may also have been looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting scheduled for next week.

The Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged as officials wait to see the fallout from Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

The central bank's accompanying statement is still likely to be in focus, as investors attempt to gauge the outlook for the next rate hike.

Among individual stocks, shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) moved sharply higher after the chipmaker returned to non-GAAP operating profitability in the second quarter on its first increase in sales in nearly two years.

Online radio service Pandora Media (P) also turned in a strong performance on the day after reporting a narrower than expected second quarter loss.

Meanwhile, shares of Skechers (SKX) came under pressure after the shoemaker reported weaker than expected second quarter earnings and revenues.

Sector News

Trucking stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the Dow Jones Trucking Index up by 2.1 percent.

Swift Transportation (SWFT) led the trucking sector higher, jumping by 13.6 percent after reporting better than expected second quarter earnings and revenues.

Considerable strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 1.8 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. The index regained some ground after moving notably lower over the three previous sessions.

American Airlines (AAL) posted a standout gain on the day, surging up by 4 percent following the release of its second quarter results.

Railroad, telecom, and utilities stocks also saw significant strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index edged down by 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.5 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries fluctuated over the course of the trading day before closing roughly flat. 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 1.570 percent.

Looking Ahead

While the Fed meeting is likely to be in focus next week, traders will also be presented with reports on new home sales, durable goods orders, and second quarter GDP.

Earnings news is also likely to continue to attract attention, as a slew of big-name companies are scheduled to release their quarterly results next week.

Apple (AAPL), DuPont (DD), McDonald's (MCD), Verizon (VZ), Caterpillar (CAT), Twitter (TWTR), Coca-Cola (KO), Facebook (FB), Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Chevron (CVX), and Exxon Mobil (XOM) are among the companies due to report their results.