Day Traders Diary

3/25/21

The major averages wiped out earlier losses and turned higher in volatile trading Thursday as the market tried to rebound from a two-day losing streak. The S&P 500 traded 0.53% higher, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 200 points after losing as much as 348 points. The Nasdaq Composite also turned 0.12% higher as some major technology stocks reserved losses. Tesla rose 1.4%, while Apple and Alphabet both traded in the green.

Stocks that tied to a successful economic reopening such as airlines and cruise line operators led the late-day rebound. American Airlines and United gained about 4% each, which Norwegian Cruise Line and Carnival rose 2.8% and 3.7%, respectively. Boeing climbed 3%.

The market experienced some weakness earlier in the day as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted at one day starting to remove the stimulus that has boosted the market during the pandemic.

The three major averages are still all on track to post a losing week, with the S&P 500 and the Dow falling 1% each. The Nasdaq has fallen more than 2% this week. The S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow hit their record highs last week.

Oil prices fell about 4% Thursday as demand concerns rekindled with fresh coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. The S&P 500 energy sector slid more than 2%.

Bond yields continued to decline from recent highs. The 10-year Treasury yield dipped 1 basis point to 1.62%, falling for a fourth day after the rate hit a 14-month high last week.

Investors pored over a better-than-expected reading on weekly jobless claims. The Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 684,000 for the week ended March 20, lower than an estimate of 735,000 from economists surveyed by Dow Jones.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq has been the relative underperformer with a flat return this year, compared to the S&P 500′s 3% rise. Some investors have been taking profits in their growth winners which led the market's rebound from the pandemic losses last year.

Netflix has fallen 6.8% this month, while Tesla is down about 6%. Pandemic winner Zoom Video has dropped 16% in March.