U.S. Stocks Show Strong Move Back To The Upside On Inflation Data

(RTTNews) - After moving mostly lower over the two previous sessions, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Tuesday. The major averages fluctuated over the course of the session but finished the day firmly in positive territory.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq helped lead the way higher on the day, surging 246.36 points or 1.5 percent to 16,265.63. The S&P 500 also jumped 57.33 points or 1.1 percent to 5,175.27, while the narrower Dow climbed 235.83 points or 0.6 percent to 39,005.49.

The strength on Wall Street partly reflected a positive reaction to the Labor Department's highly anticipated report on consumer price inflation in the month of February.

The Labor Department said its consumer price index climbed by 0.4 percent in February after rising by 0.3 percent in January. The increase matched economist estimates.

Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices also rose by 0.4 percent in February, matching the increase seen in January. Economists had expected core prices to rise by 0.3 percent.

The report also said the annual rate of consumer price growth ticked up to 3.2 percent in February from 3.1 percent in January. The year-over-year growth was expected to be unchanged.

Meanwhile, the annual rate of core consumer price growth slowed to 3.8 percent in February from 3.9 percent in January. Economists had expected the pace of growth to decelerate to 3.7 percent.

While core price growth slowed by slightly less than expected, the slowdown still seems to have added to optimism about the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates in June.

"Although inflation has continued to ease, much of core inflation remains 'sticky' and isn't unwinding at a pace that would offer the Fed the confidence it needs to begin the easing cycle perhaps even in June," said Quincy Krosby, Chief Global Strategist for LPL Financial.

She added, "What could help underpin a move in June or July, however, is that Owners Equivalent Rent (OER) has begun to tick lower, and given its heavy weighting in the CPI a continued downward trajectory by June or July could certainly assuage Fed concerns regarding inflation remaining stubbornly higher."

The Labor Department is scheduled to release a separate report on Thursday on producer price inflation in the month of February.

Sector News

Software stocks saw substantial strength on the day, resulting in a 2.6 percent surge by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.

Oracle (ORCL) led the sector higher, soaring by 11.8 percent after reporting better than expected fiscal third quarter earnings and strong cloud revenue growth.

Semiconductor stocks also showed a significant move back to the upside, driving the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up by 2.1 percent.

Considerable strength was also visible among retail stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain posted by the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index.

On the other hand, gold stocks moved sharply lower along with the price of the precious metal, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 2.0 percent.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance on Tuesday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index soared by 3.1 percent, while Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.8 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index jumped by 1.0 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries came under pressure over the course of the session after seeing early volatility. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, climbed 5.4 basis points to 4.155 percent.

Looking Ahead

A lack of major U.S. economic data may keep some traders on the sidelines on Wednesday ahead of the release of several key reports later in the week.