Stocks almost at record highs, but watch out for Crude Oil

Stocks closed in on record highs last week.

On Monday, stocks opened higher then pulled right back to where the day started.

On Tuesday, it was the opposite – stocks opened lower, dropped, then rallied to get back to breakeven.

Then on Wednesday stocks were off to the races.

Helped out by promising trade news, the major indices were up nicely making their way back towards record highs.

On Thursday, stocks opened higher and chopped around, but still managed to end the day with gains.

Friday wasn’t very exciting and stocks were mixed. The S&P and NASDAQ finished Friday slightly lower, but the DOW was higher, extending its win streak to 8 straight days!

Here’s what traders are focusing on right now:

• Trade – After playing hardball for weeks, President Trump and China seem ready to make a deal. Trump delayed a tariff increase and even flirted with the idea of an interim deal, although he said he would prefer a full deal. And on Friday, China said it will exempt some U.S. agricultural products from tariffs (specifically soybeans and pork).
   
• Record Highs – With last week’s gains, the major indices are closing in on record highs. The S&P is 0.7% away from its record, the DOW is within 0.7% of its record, and the NASDAQ is 2.0% away from its record.

• Crude Oil
  This upcoming week, Crude Oil will be in the spotlight after Saudi oil facilities were attacked by drones over the weekend. The attack forced Saudi Arabia to shut down almost half of their crude oil output (about 5 million barrels), which is roughly 5% of the world’s daily production. Iran-allied rebels in Yemen are claiming responsibility for the attack.

Here’s where the major indices ended the week:

• The S&P finished with a 1.0% gain. Up 29 points, the S&P ended at 3,007.
• The DOW ended higher by 1.6%. Adding 422 points, the DOW closed at 27,220.
• The NASDAQ was up 0.9%. With a 74 point gain, the NASDAQ finished at 8,177

Crude Oil (CL) struggled to stay above $55 a barrel this week and finished lower. With a 2.9% loss, CL ended at $54.82 a barrel.

But on the other hand, banks were a big winner last week.

With the positive trade news, interest rate yields were higher. And the higher interest rates helped banks.

Last week JP Morgan Chase (JPM) was higher by 6.8%, Bank of America (BAC) was up 8.8%, and Wells Fargo (WFC) rallied 3.8%.