NEW YORK, March 3 (Xinhua) — Wall Street’s major averages rallied on Friday, amid falling U.S. Treasury yields.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 387.4 points, or 1.17 percent, to 33,390.97. The S&P 500 added 64.29 points, or 1.61 percent, to 4,045.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 226.02 points, or 1.97 percent, to 11,689.01.
All the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with technology and consumer discretionary up 2.14 percent and 2.12 percent, respectively, leading the advance.
A retreat in U.S. government bond yields served as a significant positive catalyst for stocks.
The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury managed to settle back below the psychologically important 4 percent level on Friday. The yield on the 2-year Treasury note also declined.
Meanwhile, investors parsed the latest U.S. non-manufacturing report.
The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported Friday that U.S. services PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index) edged down to 55.1 percent in February from 55.2 percent in the prior month. Readings above 50 percent signal expansion in the sector, while readings below indicate contraction.
“The February ISM Services suggested little to exacerbate market anxieties over stubborn inflation and economic overheating,” Will Compernolle, macro strategist at FHN Financial, said Friday in a note.
“Next Friday’s employment report and February CPI on March 14 will set the tone for the March 21-22 FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee), where a new dot plot and set of economic projections will establish a new anchor point for 2023 rate expectations,” Compernolle added.
For the week, the Dow rose 1.75 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 1.9 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 2.58 percent.
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