The Markets (as of market close April 26, 2019) The S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached record highs last week on the heels of an unexpectedly strong GDP report. Tech shares got a boost from strong quarterly earnings reports from a major player in that sector. Of the benchmark indexes listed here, only the Dow and the Global Dow failed to post gains by the end of the week. The small caps of the Russell 2000 rebounded by gaining over 1.50%, while the S&P 500 closed the week up 1.20%. F

The Markets (as of market close April 19, 2019) Stocks moved very little during the holiday-shortened week (markets were closed in observance of Good Friday). The large caps of the Dow inched up a little over 0.5%, while the S&P 500 dropped less than 0.1%. With light trading, the Cboe Volatility Index® fell to an eight-month low last week. Favorable earnings reports helped push industrial shares higher, offset by dipping health-care stocks. The yield on 10-year Treasuries sta

The Markets (as of market close April 12, 2019) Trading was fairly light last week as investors await the start of quarterly corporate earnings reports. With several large corporations reporting lower-than-expected profits, investors may be leery of this round of earnings results. However, better-than-expected earnings were reported by a few banking giants last Friday, which should help the market kick off the week on a positive note. While investors watch for more earnings r

The Markets (as of market close April 5, 2019) Stocks marked a second consecutive week of solid gains, led by the small caps of the Russell 2000 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq. The S&P 500 recorded seven consecutive days of gains through last Friday — the longest such streak since 2017. Once again, investors heard positive rhetoric relative to a trade deal with China. This time, President Trump announced that an "epic" deal could be in the not-too-distant future. Long-term bond pr

The Markets (as of market close March 29, 2019) Stocks rebounded last week to close the final week of March and the first quarter of 2019 in the black. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here gained over 1.0% for the week, except the Global Dow, which inched ahead less than 0.2%. Year-to-date, the tech-heavy Nasdaq leads the way, followed by the small caps of the Russell 2000, the S&P 500, the Dow, and the Global Dow. Technology shares jumped, as did energy stocks, on the h