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US equity markets advanced after resuming trading following the Martin Luther King Jnr. Day holiday, with as U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen advocating for further fiscal stimulus - Dow added +116-points or +0.38%, snapping a three session slide. Boeing Co gained +3.13% as Canada said it would lift a near two-year flight ban on its 737 MAX following two fatal crashes involving the model while a final clearance from Europe to resume flying the jet is expected next week. The broader S&P500 rose +0.81%, with Energy (+2.05%), Communication Services (+1.87%) and Information Technology (+1.31%) leading eight of the eleven primary sectors higher. The more defensive sectors lagged, with Real Estate down =-0.54%, Consumer Staples -0.44% and Utilities -0.37%. General Motors Company jumped +9.75% after the automaker said it was partnering with Microsoft Corp (+1.78%) to speed up the commercialisation of driverless cars. As part of the “long-term strategic relationship,” Microsoft will join General Motors (GM) as well as Honda Motor Co. Ltd and institutional investors on a combined new US$2B equity investment in GM’s self-driving vehicle start-up Cruise. Tesla Inc rose +2.23% after the electric vehicle market leader tweeted over the weekend that it has started official deliveries of its Model Y vehicles in China. The technology-centric Nasdaq gained +1.53% to 13,197.18, settling just shy of its 8 January all-time high (13,201.98). The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index gained +1.32%. In broader stock moves, Harley Davidson Inc rose +2.1% toward a 2-year high after the motorcycle group said its 2021 line-up of bikes have arrived at its dealers.

US equity and bond markets were CLOSED overnight for the Martin Luther King holiday.
President-elect Joe Biden’s team confirmed overnight it planned to nominate two consumer champions to lead top financial agencies, signalling a tougher stance on the industry than many had anticipated. Gary Gensler will serve as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Federal Trade Commission member Rohit Chopra will head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Mr Gensler is expected to pursue new corporate disclosures on climate change related-risks, political spending, and the composition and treatment of company workforces, and to complete post-crisis executive compensation curbs, among other rules. Mr Chopra is expected to review payday lending and debt-collection rules

US equity markets dropped on Friday (15 January) as investors pondered incoming President Biden’s US$1.9 trillion stimulus plan and parsed quarterly results from a brace of major US banks - Dow down -177-points or -0.57%, paring an earlier decline of as much as -379-points. Dow Inc (down -%) and Chevron Corp (-%) both fell more than 3% led the 30-stock average lower. The broader S&P500 fell -0.72%, with the Energy sector dropping -4% and posting its worst one-day decline since late November. Financials (down -1.80%), Materials (-1.46%) and Industrials (-1.27%) all fell over >1%. The more defensive sectors outperformed, with Real Estate up +1.46%, Utilities +0.96% and Health Care +0.32%. Exxon Mobil Corp fell -4.81% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission launched an investigation into allegations that an employee of the oil giant overstated the value of a key Permian Basin asset. Pfizer Inc slipped -0.14% after confirming it will temporarily reduce deliveries to Europe of its COVID-19 vaccine while it upgrades production capacity to 2B doses a year. The Nasdaq shed -0.87%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -1.49%. For the week, the Dow lost -0.91%, S&P500 -1.48% and Nasdaq -1.54%. However, the Russell 2000 gained +1.50%. US equity and bond markets are CLOSED tonight AEST for the Martin Luther King holiday.

US equity markets settled with modest losses, relinquishing earlier gains in the final hour of trading that saw both the Dow and Nasdaq touch fresh record intra-day highs - Dow lost -69-points or -0.22%, having been up over >150-points earlier in the session and logging a fresh record intra-day high (31,223.78). Intel Corporation gained +4.04%, buoyed by a number of analyst upgrades after it was announced a day earlier that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bob Swan would step down effective 15 February, with VMWare Inc (+1.76%) CEO Pat Gelsinger to step into the role. The broader S&P500 fell -0.38%, with Information Technology (down -0.95%) leading seven of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy returned to the top of the primary sector leaderboard with a +3.01% gain. The Nasdaq slipped -0.12% after scaling a fresh record intra-day peak (13,220.16) earlier in the session. Facebook Inc fell -2.38%, while Amazon.com Inc (-1.21%), Netflix Inc (-1.36%), Microsoft Corp (-1.53%) and Apple Inc (-1.51%) all declined by more than >1%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index rallied +2.05%. In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, Cisco Systems (down -0.46%) after CNBC reported that it was proposing a higher bit for Acacia Communications

•US equity markets edged higher after a choppy session, lifted by a defensive sectors and a rebound for technology stocks and as the latest political theatre unfolded in Washington - Dow dipped -8-points or -0.03%. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) dipped -0.15% after the New York Times reported that the company unlikely to distribute as many COVID-19 vaccine doses in the spring as previously expected. Separately, the New England Journal of Medicine published trial data that showed Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose coronavirus vaccine is safe and appears to generate a promising immune response in both young and elderly volunteers. The broader S&P500 rose +0.23%, with Utilities (up +1.94%) and Real Estate (+1.39%) leading seven of the eleven primary sectors higher. Materials (down -1.06%), Industrials (-0.86%) and Energy (-0.81%) were the notable underperformers. Chipmaker Intel Corp gained +6.97% after it was announced that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bob Swan would step down effective 15 February, with VMWare Inc (down -6.79%) CEO Pat Gelsinger to step into the role. The Nasdaq gained +0.44%, with Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Netflix Inc and Microsoft Corp advancing +1.62%, +1.44%, +2.74% and +0.66%, respectively. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index fell -0.75% a day after hitting a fresh record closing high.

•US equity markets little changed as investors weighed a combination of higher rates, possible stimulus and political turmoil - Dow added +60-points or +0.19% at 31,069, just shy of last Friday’s (8 January) record closing high (31,097.97). Goldman Sachs Group Inc (up +2.85%) and JPMorgan Chase & Co (+1.57%) among the leading index performers. The broader S&P500 eked out a +0.04% rise, with the more cyclical sectors (including Energy up +3.5%, Materials +1.35% and Financials +1.06%) the leading performers. Communication Services was the worst performing primary sector with a -1.50% decline. The Nasdaq settled +0.28% higher despite falls for a number of big technology names including Facebook Inc (down -2.24%), Google parent Alphabet Inc (-1.14%) and Microsoft Corp (-1.18%). The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index once again outperformed with a +1.77% rally to a fresh record closing high (2,127.96). In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, Visa Inc (down -1.89%) has abandoned its US$5.3B takeover of Silicon Valley start-up Plaid about two months after the Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit on grounds that it would limit competition in the payments industry.

US equity markets retreated from record highs albeit settled well off their worst levels of the session - Dow fell -89-points or -0.29%, paring an earlier decline of over >300-points. Boeing Co fell -1.48% lower after a 737-500 jet disappeared minutes after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital, during heavy rain on Saturday (9 January). The broader S&P500 shed -0.66%, with Consumer Discretionary (down -1.89%), Communication Services (-1.77%) and Real Estate (-1.66%) all down over >1.5% and leading seven of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy was the best performing primary sector with a +1.62% gain. Tesla Inc fell -7.82% after gaining ~25% last week. However, NIO Inc rallied +6.42% following its annual consumer event on Saturday (9 January) where it launched a new luxury sedan. However, the China-based electric vehicle maker fell over >3% in the extended session it will offer US$1.3B in convertible notes, split into US$650M in notes due 2026 and US$650M due the year after. Net proceeds will go mostly to general corporate purposes and "to further strengthen its cash and balance sheet positions," the China-based electric-car maker said. Gilead Sciences Inc lost -0.84% despite raising sales guidance to reflect revenue from its Covid-19 treatment remdesivir. The technology-centric Nasdaq shed -1.25%. Twitter Inc fell -6.41%, paring an earlier decline of over >12% amid concerns around the company’s engagement in selective censorship that included banning President Trump from the platform. Facebook Inc fell -4.01%. Amazon.com Inc fell -2.15% after Amazon Web Services ended its relationship as the web host for the right-of-centre chat service Parler, effectively blocking the service from the internet. Lululemon Athletica Inc slid -1.04% despite the company saying earnings would grow at the high end of its previous guidance. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index dipped -0.03%.

US equity markets scaled fresh record highs to close a strong week as hopes of further economic stimulus overshadowed a soft December jobs report - Dow added +57-points or +0.18% to 31,097.97, having fallen over >200-points earlier in the session. Coca-Cola Co (up +2.24%) was the leading Dow performer. The broader S&P500 rose +0.55% to 3,824.68, with Consumer Discretionary (up +1.80%) and Real Estate (+1.09%) leading seven of the eleven primary sectors higher. Materials (down (-0.51%), Industrials (-0.22%) and Financials (-0.19%) - which outperformed their peers and scaled record levels earlier last week – slipped on Friday (8 January). Tesla Inc was the leading S&P500 performer, jumping +7.84% to yet another record closing high (US$880.02). The latest rally came on the back of heavy turnover, with Tesla trading US$62B worth of stock – more than the next ten most active stocks combined. Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO Inc rallied +8.5% ahead of unveiling its new all-electric sedan on Saturday (9 January) at its fourth annual NIO Day. In addition to the car, NIO also unveiled a higher-capacity battery and new swapping stations with more daily capacity. Both the Dow and S&P 500 posted four-day winning streaks. The Nasdaq gained +1.03% to 13,201.98. Apple Inc The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index slipped -0.16%.

Fresh records for US equity markets amid ongoing optimism of further stimulus measures - Dow gained +212-points or +0.69% to 31,041.13, paring an earlier gain of over >300-points but settling above >31,000 for the first time. Boeing Co fell -0.7% in the extended session after agreeing to pay more than >US$2.5B in penalties, including nearly US$1.8B in compensation for airlines, to resolve charges of misleading U.S. aviation authorities in connection with the company’s 737 Max aircraft, the Justice Department said late Thursday. Coca Cola Company (down -1.1%) retreated for a fourth consecutive session after J.P. Morgan became the latest bank to downgrade the beverage giant (to Neutral from Overweight), citing an increased risk that the company loses its current tax dispute with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). American Express Company lost -0.79% after the Wall Street Journal reported that the investigative arms of three U.S. financial agencies were probing the card issuer’s sales practices. The broader S&P500 rose +1.48% to 3,803.79, settling above >3,800 for the first time. Information Technology (up +2.65%) led nine of the eleven primary sectors higher. Financials rose +1.47%, while the Industrial (+0.55%) and Materials (0.79%) sectors hit new records. DXC Technology surged + 9.3% and was the biggest gainer in the S&P500 on reports the IT-services giant has received takeover interest. Tesla Inc (up +7.94% to US$816.04) logged its tenth consecutive session gain and climbed above US$800 per share for the first time. The latest gain saw Elon Musk become the world’s richest person, overtaking Amazon.com Inc’s (u+0.76%) Jeff Bezos as his net worth crossed US$185B. Tesla’s market capitalisation (~US$774B) also exceeded Facebook Inc’s (~US$765B after the company’s shares rose +2.06%). T-Mobile Inc rose +1.26% and hit a record high (US$135.45) after announcing after the close of the previous session that it added a better-than-expected +1.6M postpaid subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2020 (versus consensus analyst expectations for the addition of +1.5M) despite a competitive few months as wireless companies flooded the market with iPhone 12 promotions. The Nasdaq jumped +2.56% to 13,067.48, climbing above >13,000 for the first time. Chipmakers traded strongly, with Advanced Micro Devices (up +5.35%), NVIDIA Corp (+5.78%) and Lam Research Corp (+3.62%) all gaining over >3%. The Russell 2000 index recorded a fresh record high, rising +1.88% to 2,096.64. It marked the third consecutive rise of 1% or more for the small capitalisation index, the longest such streak since June 2020 , according to Dow Jones Market Data.

US equity markets rallied as investors bought financial and industrial stocks on expectations that a Democratic sweep in the Senate run-off elections in Georgia would lead to more fiscal stimulus and infrastructure spending - Dow rallied +438-points or +1.44%, rallying as much as +600-points and hitting a fresh record intra-day high (31,022.65). Caterpillar Inc surged +5.5% to be among the leading index performers along with Goldman Sachs Inc (+5.40%) and JPMorgan Chase & Co (+4.70%). The broader S&P500 rose +0.57% and also touched an intra-day record peak (3,783.04). The Financials sector jumped +4.36% and led seven of the eleven primary sectors higher as US 10 Treasury yields topped >1% for the first time since March last year. Ford Motor Company rose +2.20% despite sales dropping -2.8% in the fourth quarter as sales of the star F-150 was hit by pandemic-related stoppages leading up to the release of the pickup truck’s newest version. Total vehicle sales in the U.S. fell nearly 10% to 542,749 units, with sales of trucks down more than >12% and SUV sales up 4%. The technology-centric Nasdaq lost -0.61% amid concerns over higher tax rates for the information technology sector. Facebook Inc (down -2.83%) and Amazon.com Inc (-2.49%) both fell over >2%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 index jumped +3.98% to a record closing high of 2,057.92. In merger and acquisition (M&A) news, AmerisourceBergen Corp gained +8.60% after the U.S. drug wholesaler said it would buy Dow component Walgreens Boots Alliance’s (up +4.54%) drug distribution business for US$6.5B to expand in Europe.