In Dow Jones news today, the Dow rallied back above 20,000 thanks to the financial sector and a better than expected January jobs report from the Labor Department.
Let's look at the numbers from Friday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Dow Jones: 20,071.46; +186.55; +0.94%
S&P 500: 2,297.42; +16.57; +0.73%
Nasdaq: 5,666.77; +30.57; +0.54%
Now, here's a look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus a preview of Monday's economic calendar.
Dow Jones News Today: Financial Stocks Boost Market
A positive jobs report and plans from the Trump White House to repeal or reform financial regulations helped bolster investor sentiment.
Banking stocks pushed higher after President Trump announced intentions to roll back the Dodd-Frank Act. Trump's advisers have complained that the law has pushed billions of dollars in unnecessary regulatory costs. The White House announced intentions to work with Congress to draft a "legislative piece" to reform the financial law.
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Shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC), Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS), and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) all climbed on the news.
The U.S. Labor Department also announced that the American economy added 227,000 jobs in January. Meanwhile, the U.S. unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 4.8%, a figure that was higher than economists' expectations.
Crude oil prices were up slightly as traders digested the possibility that the United States could put new sanctions on Iran over its recent ballistic missile test. Trump said that "nothing is off the table" in addressing Iran's violation of its nuclear agreement. Those geopolitical concerns helped offset concerns that U.S. production is on the rise. This afternoon, Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) announced that the U.S. production rig count increased for the third straight week. The number of production platforms increased by 17 to 583 this week.
The WTI crude oil price today added 0.5%. Meanwhile, Brent crude gained 0.4%.
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Prediction: Natural Gas Prices in 2017 Will Soar Double Digits
But there was bigger President Trump news today.
Trump also halted the implementation of an Obama-era rule that requires retirement advisers to operate in their clients' best interests. The administration says that it needs more time to review the rule before making a decision on its future. If you want to learn about the fiduciary rule, who is working to kill the rule, and what it means for your retirement, click here.
Stock Market News: Feb. 3, 2017
- In deal news, shares of Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) have been pushing higher on word that the company's exiting CEO was considering a deal to sell the company. On Friday, the stock rallied more than 7% on rumors that Canadian retail giant Hudson Bay was looking at a possible deal.
- The brokerage battles are heating up. Shares of Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) gained more than 2.5% after it announced a big cut in its commission fees for investors. The announcement bolstered many of its peers as well. Shares of E*TRADE Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: ETFC) and TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: AMTD) both climbed today.
- Shares of Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) added more than 0.94% on rumors that the defense company has reached an agreement with the Trump administration on the F-35 program. The company will sell 90 F-35 jets for $8.5 billion. The Trump administration said that the decline saved U.S. taxpayers more than $700 million.
- Shares of Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) slumped more than 3% after the world's largest online retailer shocked analysts with a weak operating profit forecast. The downturn came even though company revenue surged 22% to $43.7 billion.
- GoPro Inc. (Nasdaq: GPRO) disappointed in its earnings report. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.29, which was higher than the expected $0.22. However, revenue fell way below expectations at $540.6 million. Analysts expected $574.54 million. Following the announcement, the company's stock received downgrades from Raymond James and RW Baird.
Monday's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EST)
- Labor Market Conditions Index at 10:00 a.m.
- Four-Week Bill Announcement at 11:00 a.m.
- Three-Month Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.
- Treasury Strips at 3:00 p.m.
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About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.