S&P 500 Rises 1%; Crude Oil Down Over 4%

U.S. stocks traded higher toward the end of trading, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining over 1.5% on Tuesday.

The Dow traded up 0.40% to 31,945.39 while the NASDAQ rose 1.58% to 11,365.53. The S&P 500, also rose, gaining, 1% to 3,894.65.

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Leading and Lagging Sectors

• Communication services shares rose by 2% on Tuesday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Innovid Corp. CTV, up 10%, and Tremor International Ltd TRMR, up 10%.
• In trading on Tuesday, health care shares rose by just 0.1%.

Top Headline

The annual inflation rate in the US eased to 6% in February, the lowest level since September 2021, in line with market expectations, and versus 6.4% in the previous month.

Equities Trading UP

• PacWest Bancorp PACW shares shot up 36% to $40.54 as part of what appears to be a relief rally in the financial sector as several bank names bounce back after facing heavy selling pressure over the last few trading sessions.
• Shares of First Republic Bank FRC got a boost, shooting 30% to $40.54 as part of what appears to be a relief rally in the financial sector as several bank names bounce back after facing heavy selling pressure over the last few trading sessions.
• Ainos, Inc. AIMD shares were also up, gaining 59% to $1.19 after the company announced it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Merdury Biopharmaceutical to jointly explore and develop a strategic business relationship.

Equities Trading DOWN

• GitLab Inc. GTLB shares tumbled 29% to $31.56 after the company issued weak revenue guidance.
• Shares of Oportun Financial Corporation OPRT were down 31% to $2.90 after the company posted downbeat Q4 results and issued weak revenue forecast.
• RAPT Therapeutics, Inc. RAPT was down, falling 28% to $19.07 after reporting Q4 results.

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Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 4.4% to $71.50 while gold traded down 0.2% at $1,913.30.

Silver traded up 0.6% to $22.05 on Tuesday while copper fell 1.4% to $3.9985.

Euro zone

European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 gained 1.53%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 1.17% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index climbed 2.23%. The German DAX climbed 1.83% French CAC 40 rose 1.86% and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 2.36%.

Italy’s industrial production declined by 0.7% from a month ago in January. Spain's consumer price inflation rate was revised lower to 6.0% in February versus a preliminary reading of 6.1%.

The unemployment rate in the UK came in at 3.7% in November to January. Average weekly earnings climbed 5.7% year-over-year to GBP 630 in the three months to January.

Asia Pacific Markets

Asian markets closed lower on Tuesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropping 2.19%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropping 2.27% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index declining 0.72%. India’s S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.58%.

Manufacturing production in Hong Kong dropped 0.1 percent year-over-year in the fourth quarter. Indian annual wholesale price inflation rate declined to 3.85% in February from 4.73% in the previous month. The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment for Australia came in unchanged at 78.5 in March, while NAB business confidence index fell 10 points to -4 during February.

Economics

• The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose to 90.9 in February, recording the highest level in three months.
• The annual inflation rate in the US eased to 6% in February, the lowest level since September 2021, in line with market expectations, and versus 6.4% in the previous month.

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COVID-19 Update

The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 105,649,010 cases with around 1,148,990 deaths. India confirmed a total of at least 44,691,330 cases and 530,780 deaths, while France reported over 39,657,160 COVID-19 cases with 165,210 deaths. In total, there were at least 681,707,740 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with more than 6,812,900 deaths.