US Markets

Stocks close higher, post 4-day win streak, as investors regain faith in Trump trade

Stockspost 4-day win streak as investors regain faith in Trump trade
VIDEO0:3600:36
Stockspost 4-day win streak as investors regain faith in Trump trade

Stocks closed higher on Tuesday as hope around the Trump trade was renewed among investors.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose about 45 points higher with Goldman Sachs contributing the most gains.

The S&P 500 also ended higher and nearly erased the losses suffered from the biggest sell-off of the year. The index rose 0.2 percent to come about 2 points of closing above the Tuesday, May 16, close of 2,400.67.

The Nasdaq composite eked out a small gain despite Apple slipping. But the three major indexes notched a four-day winning streak, extending their bounce following the biggest sell-off of the year.

Last Wednesday, stocks dropped more than 1 percent on the back of fears that Trump's pro-growth agenda may be in danger. Reports that Trump allegedly tried to influence a federal investigation sent shivers down Wall Street.

"As we get temporary spikes in volatility, ... these will continue to be buying opportunities because the fundamentals have been so strong," said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab, noting that the latest earnings season exceeded expectations and economic data remained solid.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Getty Images

Wall Street kept an eye on Trump's first trip overseas since taking office. The president met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and also met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The U.S. president will be in Europe for the rest of his trip.

Trump's "trip overseas is definitely helping. Not so much so because of what he's done, but because he is tied up and doesn't have time to cause problems," said Schwab's Frederick.

Investors also paid attention to the White House's proposed budget for next year. In it, the White House is seeking to cut federal spending by $3.6 trillion over the next 10 years.

The budget also assumes the administration will be able to lower taxes for businesses and households. The potential of lower taxes has been a boon for stocks since Trump's election, along with possible deregulation and infrastructure spending, as the major indexes have broken into record territory.

"Most of the rhetoric out of the budget and Trump's trip overseas has not been negative," said Jeff Zipper, managing director of investments at the Private Client Reserve of U.S. Bank. "It's positive that Washington is discussing his agenda. We'll see how much of that gets passed."

But traditional safe havens have caught a bid recently. The benchmark 10-year note yield falling to around 2.28 percent from its highest levels near 2.62 percent as investors prepared for the possibility that tax reform may not come as soon as previously thought.

Gold prices have also risen. The metal's 50-day moving average crossed above its 200-day moving average on Monday, potentially signaling more gains.

In Europe, stocks traded mostly higher despite an attack that killed at least 22 people and injured dozens at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester.

The terrorist attack has dragged sterling marginally lower and led Prime Minister Teresa May to suspend her election campaign ahead of the June 8 election.

"It's a good thing that financial markets are holding up on the back of these attacks because if people panicked then it could be a bigger incentive for terrorists to attack more," said Nick Raich, CEO of The Earnings Scout.

In economic news, new home sales fell 11.4 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 569,000. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales would decrease by 1.5 percent to 610,000 units.

Historically, such large misses in new home sales have led to trouble for stocks. According to Kensho, S&P returns average negative 2.86 percent a month after new home sales miss by 50,000 or more. Returns for the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector Fund ETF (XLY) fall 3.44 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.

Later this week, the Federal Reserve will release the minutes from its May meeting, with investors hoping to get more clues about the central bank's plans for monetary policy.

"We certainly believe there will be a rate hike in June," said John Stadtler, head of U.S. Financial Services at PwC. "The June meeting gives them the opportunity to give feedback about what they are thinking."

Major U.S. Indexes


The Dow Jones industrial average rose 43.08 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 20,937.91, with Goldman Sachs leading advancers and Home Depot lagging.

The gained 4.40 points, or 0.18 percent, to end at 2,398.42, with financials leading 10 sectors higher and consumer discretionary the only decliner.

The Nasdaq advanced 5.09 points, or 0.08 percent, to close at 6,138.71.

About nine stocks advanced for every five decliners at the New York Stock Exchange, with an exchange volume of 767.31 million and a composite volume of 3.196 billion at the close.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, traded near 10.8.

—CNBC's Silvia Amaro and Alexandra Gibbs contributed to this report.

Disclosure: CNBC's parent NBCUniversal is a minority investor in Kensho.

On tap this week:

Wednesday

Earnings: HP, Tiffany, Lowe's, Pure Storage, Bank of Montreal, Eaton Vance, JA Solar

9:00 a.m. FHFA home prices

9:45 a.m. Markit mfg. PMI

10:00 a.m. Existing home sales

2:00 p.m. FOMC minutes

6:00 p.m. Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan

Thursday

OPEC meets in Vienna

Earnings: Medtronic, Abercrombie and Fitch, Ulta Beauty, GameStop, Nutanix, Splunk, Best Buy, Hormel Foods, Toronto-Dominion Bank , Royal Bank of Canada

8:30 a.m. Jobless claims

8:30 a.m. Advance econ indicators

4:00 a.m. New York Fed Executive Vice President Simon Potter

10:00 a.m. Fed Gov. Lael Brainard

10:00 p.m. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard

Friday

8:30 a.m. Durable goods

8:30 a.m. Q1 (second read) Real GDP

9:45 a.m. Markit services PMI

10:00 a.m. Consumer sentiment

Watch: Amazon headed to $1,000

Closing Bell Exchange: Amazon going to $1K
VIDEO5:4905:49
Closing Bell Exchange: Amazon going to $1K