- Title: S&P 500 extends winning streak, nabs sixth straight record close
- Date: 1st July 2021
- Summary: HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 1, 2021) (REUTERS VIA SKYPE) (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST AT CROSSMARK GLOBAL INVESTMENTS, VICTORIA FERNANDEZ, SAYING: "We've had such a large run in the first half of the year, I think today is a little bit of consolidation that we're seeing in the market. I don't think people want to take a huge bet prior to the labor market report that comes out tomorrow. And so I think you're just going to see a little bit of movement, maybe people taking a little bit off the table, but not huge moves today." WHITE FLASH (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST AT CROSSMARK GLOBAL INVESTMENTS, VICTORIA FERNANDEZ, SAYING: "Jobless claims hit a new level post-pandemic, which is really positive, except you have to wonder how much is being affected by, I think we have about 22 states right now that have taken away the unemployment insurance, so is that factored into that? We have plenty of job openings out there. Quit rates are at high levels. So I think there's a lot of different things that are affecting this number. It'll be interesting to see what the trend is. Do we continue to move lower?"
- Embargoed: 15th July 2021 21:19
- Keywords: Nasdaq S&P 500 Wall Street blue-chip Dow buying mood microchips stocks tech shares
- Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, AND HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES
- City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, AND HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Economic Events,Equities Markets,United States
- Reuters ID: LVA002EK0C8XZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The S&P 500 reached its sixth consecutive all-time closing high on Thursday (July 1), as a new quarter and the second half of the year began with upbeat economic data and a broad-based rally.
Investors now eye Friday's (July 2) much-anticipated employment report.
The bellwether index is enjoying its longest winning streak since early February, and the last time it logged six straight all-time highs was last August.
The blue-chip Dow joined the S&P in positive territory, but a decline in tech shares - led by microchips - tempered the Nasdaq's gain.
The ongoing worker shortage, attributed to federal emergency unemployment benefits, a childcare shortage and lingering pandemic fears, was a common theme in the day's economic data.
Jobless claims continued their downward trajectory according to the Labor Department, touching their lowest level since the pandemic shutdown, and a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed planned layoffs by U.S. firms were down 88% from last year, hitting a 21-year low.
Friday's hotly anticipated jobs report is expected to show payrolls growing by 700,000 and unemployment inching down to 5.7%. A robust upside surprise could lead the U.S. Federal Reserve to adjust its timetable for tapering its securities purchases and raising key interest rates.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 131.02 points, or 0.38%, to 34,633.53, the S&P 500 gained 22.44 points, or 0.52%, to 4,319.94 and the Nasdaq Composite added 18.42 points, or 0.13%, to 14,522.38.
(Production: Fred Katayama, Hyeongmi Kim, Roselle Chen) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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