Market momentum streak
- Markets have shown unusually strong momentum, with risk appetite concentrating in tech and travel-related names. - The Rob Black Show noted the Nasdaq reached its 13th consecutive daily gain, the longest streak since 1992. - A roughly 10% drop in crude helped airlines and cruise operators rally, while energy stocks pared gains during the rotation. ( )
The Nasdaq Composite closed at a record 24,468.48 on Friday, April 17, after rising for 13 straight sessions, its longest winning streak since 1992. (cnbc.com) The index gained 1.52% on April 17, while the S&P 500 rose 1.2% to 7,126.06 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 868.71 points to 49,447.43. Yahoo Finance’s daily data shows the Nasdaq closed higher in every session from April 1 through April 17, with no losses in between. (cnbc.com, finance.yahoo.com) The move was concentrated in the parts of the market that benefit most when investors want risk and when fuel gets cheaper. Reuters reported Carnival rose more than 8% and Norwegian Cruise Line more than 7% on Friday, while Exxon Mobil fell 3.9% and Chevron dropped 2.5%. (livemint.com) Oil was the trigger for part of that rotation. West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $83.85 a barrel after falling almost 12% on April 17, and Brent settled at $90.38 after a 9% drop, according to CNBC. (cnbc.com) That drop followed Iran’s statement that the Strait of Hormuz was “completely open” for commercial vessels during the remaining period of a 10-day ceasefire, easing fears about a supply shock in one of the world’s main oil shipping routes. Reuters said traders also reacted to signs that talks between Tehran and Washington could begin over a broader peace agreement. (livemint.com, cnbc.com) The tech side of the rally has its own backdrop. MarketWatch, via Morningstar, reported that the Nasdaq had traded mostly sideways since October before this rebound, as investors swung between worries that artificial intelligence would hurt software companies and worries that heavy spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure would not pay off. (morningstar.com) By April 17, that trade had flipped fast enough for Dow Jones Market Data to call it the Nasdaq’s biggest three-week percentage-point gain since April 24, 2020. The same report said information technology now makes up 34.7% of the S&P 500, up from 5.5% in 2020, which helps explain why a rebound in large tech names can pull the whole market higher. (morningstar.com) Strategists did not treat the rally as a settled outcome. Reuters quoted Crossmark CEO Bob Doll saying there was still no signed U.S.-Iran deal even as markets traded as if the conflict was moving toward resolution. (livemint.com) For now, the streak says investors are paying up for growth, cheaper fuel, and a calmer geopolitical tape all at once. Friday’s close left the Nasdaq at a fresh high and the market with a run it had not matched since January 1992. (cnbc.com, morningstar.com)
