· The S&P 500 reached an all-time high on Monday, but the session’s gains were kept in check as investors braced for a busy week including a flurry of corporate earnings reports, economic data and an announcement from the Federal Reserve.
The broad index gained 0.1% to 2,943.03, breaking the previous record high set in September. Financials led the gains in the S&P 500, climbing 0.9%. Bank of New York Mellon and Citigroup were among the best performers in the sector, rising about 2% each.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite also hit an all-time high, rising 0.2% to 8,161.85. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 11.06 points higher at 26,554.39 as Goldman Sachs outperformed.
· “This may be the busiest week of everything in terms of catalysts,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at National Securities. “It makes sense for us to be sideways heading into that at best.”
· Shares in Asia-Pacific declined in Tuesday morning trade. Meanwhile, trade negotiations between the U.S. and China are set to resume in Beijing later in the day.
The Kospi in South Korea slipped 0.84% in morning trade. Shares of industry heavyweight Samsung Electronics declined 1.41% after the company posted a 60% decline on-year in its first quarter profit.
Over in Australia, the ASX 200 declined 0.56% as most of the sectors slipped.
· Chinese manufacturing activity grew less than expected in April, data released on Tuesday showed.
The official Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) came in at 50.1 for the month of April. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected the indicator to stay at 50.5 — the same as the previous month. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below that signals contraction.
Reference: CNBC
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