NASDAQ Index, SP500, Dow Jones Forecasts – SP500 Tests Historic Highs As Traders React To Jobs Report

SP500

SP500 tested new highs as traders reacted to the Non Farm Payrolls report. The report indicated that the economy added +50,000 jobs in December, compared to analyst consensus of +60,000. The previous report was revised from +64,000 to +56,000. Unemployment Rate declined from 4.5% (revised from 4.6%) in November to 4.4% in December, compared to analyst forecast of 4.5%. The better-than-expected Unemployment Rate report pushed Treasury yields higher as traders reduced bets on dovish Fed. However, rising Treasury yields did not put any pressure on stocks. Today, traders also had a chance to take a look at housing market data. Housing Starts declined by -4.6% month-over-month in October, compared to analyst forecast of +0.8%. Building Permits decreased by -0.2%, compared to analyst consensus of +0.7%. Michigan Consumer Sentiment improved from 52.9 in December to 54.0 in January. The Consumer Sentiment report showed that year-ahead inflation expectations were unchanged at 4.2%, while long-run inflation expectations increased from 3.2% to 3.4%.

In case SP500 stays above the resistance at 6940 – 6950, it will move towards the 7000 level. RSI is in the moderate territory, so there is plenty of room to gain additional momentum in the near term.

NASDAQ

NASDAQ gained ground as Intel rallied 10.4%. The company’s CEO met with President Donald Trump, who said that the meating was “great”. Other chip stocks were also among the biggest gainers in the NASDAQ index today.

NASDAQ settled above the 50 MA at 25,515 and is moving towards the resistance at 25,800 – 25,850. From the technical point of view, NASDAQ needs to settle above the 25,850 level to have a chance to gain sustainable upside momentum in the near term.

Dow Jones

Dow Jones moved higher amid rising demand for industrials stocks. Boeing and Caterpillar were among the biggest gainers in the Dow Jones index today.

A successful test of the resistance at 49,500 – 49,600 will push Dow Jones towards the psychologically important 50,000 level.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.