Stock Market: No collusion?

Markus Heitkoetter Rockwell Trading

This morning Attorney General William Barr and the Mueller report were in the spotlight.

Barr held a press conference at 9:30am ET and released a redacted Mueller report at 11am ET.

Was there collusion and was there an obstruction of justice by the President?

Well, it's safe to say that the Mueller report helped support exactly what you already believed.

If you're Republican the report supports the President's claims and the whole thing was a waste of time and money. If you're a Democrat, you probably can't believe the whole thing. And so goes politics...

What's safer to assume is that the markets shrugged off the news.

Stocks were slightly higher at the open and drifted higher. There was a drop late morning and then a mid-day rally. And by the end of the day, the major indices were trading back near session highs.

Here's where the major indices ended the day:

The S&P finished with a 0.2% gain. Up 5 points, the S&P ended at 2,905.
The DOW ended higher by 0.4%. Adding 110 points, the DOW closed at 26,560.
The NASDAQ was down 0.1%. With a 4 point loss, the NASDAQ finished at 7,997.

Crude Oil (CL) was quiet before settling at $64 a barrel with a 0.4% gain.

Aside from the political news, it was a big day for earnings and IPOs.

Honeywell (HON) jumped 3.8% after better than expected numbers, United Rentals (URI) was up 8.2% on an earnings beat.

American Express (AXP) finished higher by 1.7%, Travelers (TRV) was up 2.3%, and Snap-On (SNA) rallied 6.5% (all rallying because of earnings).

In IPO news, Pinterest and Zoom were big winners on their first day of trading

ZOOM (ZM) was up 72.2% from its original IPO price and Pinterest (PINS) was up 28.7% from its IPO price.

Markets are closed tomorrow for Good Friday. Enjoy the 3-day weekend!

Author

Markus Heitkoetter

Rockwell Trading

As founder and CEO of Rockwell Trading Services LLC., Markus Heitkoetter has shared his trading methods and ideas with more than 300,000 traders in over 196 countries.

EUR/USD hits two-day highs near 1.1820

EUR/USD picks up pace and reaches two-day tops around 1.1820 at the end of the week. The pair’s move higher comes on the back of renewed weakness in the US Dollar amid growing talk that the Fed could deliver an interest rate cut as early as March. On the docket, the flash US Consumer Sentiment improves to 57.3 in February.

GBP/USD reclaims 1.3600 and above

GBP/USD reverses two straight days of losses, surpassing the key 1.3600 yardstick on Friday. Cable’s rebound comes as the Greenback slips away from two-week highs in response to some profit-taking mood and speculation of Fed rate cuts. In addition, hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill are also collaborating with the quid’s improvement.

Gold climbs further, focus is back to 45,000

Gold regains upside traction and surpasses the $4,900 mark per troy ounce at the end of the week, shifting its attention to the critical $5,000 region. The move reflects a shift in risk sentiment, driving flows back towards traditional safe haven assets and supporting the yellow metal.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP rebound amid risk-off, $2.6 billion liquidation wave

Bitcoin edges up above $65,000 at the time of writing on Friday, as dust from the recent macro-triggered sell-off settles. The leading altcoin, Ethereum, hovers above $1,900, but resistance at $2,000 caps the upside. Meanwhile, Ripple has recorded the largest intraday jump among the three assets, up over 10% to $1.35.

Three scenarios for Japanese Yen ahead of snap election

The latest polls point to a dominant win for the ruling bloc at the upcoming Japanese snap election. The larger Sanae Takaichi’s mandate, the more investors fear faster implementation of tax cuts and spending plans.

XRP rally extends as modest ETF inflows support recovery

Ripple is accelerating its recovery, trading above $1.36 at the time of writing on Friday, as investors adjust their positions following a turbulent week in the broader crypto market. The remittance token is up over 21% from its intraday low of $1.12.