Dow Jones Industrial Average adds another 100 points on Friday stretch
|- Dow Jones chalked in further gains on Friday as investors sentiment climbs.
- Equities are on pace for one of their best weeks of the year.
- Consumer sentiment indicators ticked higher on Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) notched in 100 points on the high side on Friday after kicking the day off on the low side. Bids tested low early in the day before recovering the 40,500.00 level and investors are knocking on one of the index’s best single-week performances of the year to-date.
The Dow Jones is up nearly 4% from Monday’s opening prices as investors find the buy button after improving US economic data helped trader slough off broad fears of a US recession. The University of Michigan’s August Consumer Sentiment Index improved to 67.8, well above the previous 66.4 and beat the forecast 66.9.
Improving consumer sentiment indicators helped to bolster investor confidence further, despite UoM 5-year Consumer Inflation Expectations holding firmly at 3.0% MoM in August. Bets of a double cut from the Federal Reserve (Fed) in September have eased to just 25%, down from last week’s peak of 70%, but markets are still fully pricing in some form of rate movement on September 18, with rate markets putting odds of a 25 bps rate cut at 75%.
Dow Jones news
A risk-on Friday means the majority of the Dow Jones index was the green for the day. Less than a third of the DJIA saw red on Friday, with losses being led by Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) and Microsoft, which both fell around six-tenths of one percent. CAT traded near $343.15 per share, while MSFT battled it out near $418.60. Boeing Co. (BA) and Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) were neck-and-neck at the top of the boards, each gaining a little less than 2% on the day, with BA testing $180.00 per share and CSCO within reach of $50.00.
Read more: Nike stock gains on continued interest in Ackman stake
Dow Jones price forecast
The Dow Jones is knocking on a 3% single-week gain on Friday, poised to chalk in the index’s single best week-on-week performance in 2024. All-time highs at 41,371.38 set in mid-July have come back into view for bidders as DJIA prices grind their way back into the high side following last week’s brief dip below 38,500.00.
The Dow is testing deep into the green for the fourth straight day, trading within touch range of 40,750.00 after buyers took a thin technical bounce from Monday’s lows at the 39,250.00 level. Price pressures will begin to mount as bids approach 41,000.00, but the DJIA continues to put in a solid run as prices run well north of the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at 38,053.00.
Dow Jones daily chart
Dow Jones FAQs
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, one of the oldest stock market indices in the world, is compiled of the 30 most traded stocks in the US. The index is price-weighted rather than weighted by capitalization. It is calculated by summing the prices of the constituent stocks and dividing them by a factor, currently 0.152. The index was founded by Charles Dow, who also founded the Wall Street Journal. In later years it has been criticized for not being broadly representative enough because it only tracks 30 conglomerates, unlike broader indices such as the S&P 500.
Many different factors drive the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). The aggregate performance of the component companies revealed in quarterly company earnings reports is the main one. US and global macroeconomic data also contributes as it impacts on investor sentiment. The level of interest rates, set by the Federal Reserve (Fed), also influences the DJIA as it affects the cost of credit, on which many corporations are heavily reliant. Therefore, inflation can be a major driver as well as other metrics which impact the Fed decisions.
Dow Theory is a method for identifying the primary trend of the stock market developed by Charles Dow. A key step is to compare the direction of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the Dow Jones Transportation Average (DJTA) and only follow trends where both are moving in the same direction. Volume is a confirmatory criteria. The theory uses elements of peak and trough analysis. Dow’s theory posits three trend phases: accumulation, when smart money starts buying or selling; public participation, when the wider public joins in; and distribution, when the smart money exits.
There are a number of ways to trade the DJIA. One is to use ETFs which allow investors to trade the DJIA as a single security, rather than having to buy shares in all 30 constituent companies. A leading example is the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA). DJIA futures contracts enable traders to speculate on the future value of the index and Options provide the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell the index at a predetermined price in the future. Mutual funds enable investors to buy a share of a diversified portfolio of DJIA stocks thus providing exposure to the overall index.
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