Stock market gains in quiet trading session | TribLIVE
NEW YORK — Expectations that the Federal Reserve will be slow to raise interest rates, spurred by a weak jobs report last week, helped send the stock market up Monday. A jump in the price of crude oil set off a rally in energy stocks.
The stock market was closed Friday, the day the Labor Department reported that employers added just 126,000 workers to payrolls in March, the smallest increase since December 2013. It was another sign of weaker economic growth and added pressure on the Federal Reserve to put off raising rates from near zero. Low rates have helped stocks soar in the past six years.
David Lefkowitz, senior equity strategist at UBS, said calming words from William Dudley, president of the Fed’s New York branch, encouraged investors. In a speech Monday, Dudley pointed to the shaky economic news and said he expects the Fed’s rate increases would be “shallow.”
“If Fed officials think the economy is not strong enough, they’re not going to do anything to jeopardize the economic recovery,” Lefkowitz said. “With inflation low and well-contained, the Fed can be patient. There’s nothing forcing their hand.”
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index gained 13.66 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 2,080.62. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 117.61 points, or 0.7 percent, to 17,880.85, and the Nasdaq composite rose 30.38 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,917.32.
“Had the market been open on Friday, we would have probably had a triple-digit decline in the Dow,” said Hank Smith, chief investment officer at Haverford Trust.
Smith said the economy was retracing a route from previous years when rough winters gave way to stronger springs.
The Institute for Supply Management reported that service companies grew at a slightly slower pace in March. The ISM services index slipped to 56.5, from 56.9 in February. A reading above 50 reflects growth.
Benchmark U.S. crude jumped $3, or 6 percent, to close at $52.14 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, setting off a rally in energy-sector stocks.
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Stock market gains in quiet trading session | TribLIVE
