(Bloomberg) — Treasury yields touched a 14-month high and stocks declined for a second day as traders weighed the consequences of more stimulus and the fallout from the implosion of Archegos Capital Management.
Utilities and chip stocks led the benchmark S&P 500 lower, though financial shares recovered from Monday’s slide. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 traded off the lowest levels of the day as Tesla Inc. turned positive. The dollar strengthened for a second day and gold slipped below $1,700 per troy ounce. Oil halted a two-day rally before the April 1 meeting of OPEC and its allies.
“So while rates have been in focus with strong prospects of a relatively imminent economic recovery, there may be more to the story,” said Mike Loewengart, managing director of investment strategy at E*Trade Financial. “Keep in mind that the tech sector has outperformed for the past two years, so a cooldown in tech stocks that have been on fire for quite a while, shouldn’t raise too many eyebrows.”
Europe’s equity benchmark extended its highest level in 13 months as the momentum swung in favor of cyclical stocks such as banks and automakers.
President Joe Biden, in an address slated for Wednesday in Pittsburgh, will detail a mass expansion of government spending aimed at reducing inequality and strengthening infrastructure. A revamp of the tax code is also part of the plan and is already proving divisive among economists and lawmakers.
Ten-year Treasury yields increased to as high as 1.77%. The five-year rate rose as high as 0.95%, a 13-month high, followed by a block sale in the notes.
ViacomCBS and Discovery rose, while the American Depositary Receipts of Chinese companies linked to the Archegos block trades also posted gains.
Meanwhile, the U.S. reached a record three-day stretch of 10 million shots over the weekend, according to the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker, and plans to offer inoculations to 90% of adults.
Investors have been focusing on the strength of the recovery and inflation risks as governments step up spending to spur growth. Positive news on vaccines is helping risk appetite, with a real-world study from Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. showing their doses effectively prevented coronavirus infections, U.S. government researchers said.
Read: Archegos Drama Hardly Ruffles a Market That’s ‘Drunk on Risk’
Some key events to watch this week:
President Biden is expected to unveil his infrastructure program Wednesday.EIA crude inventory report Wednesday.OPEC+ meets to discuss production levels for May on Thursday.China Caixin PMI due Thursday.U.S. employment report for March on Friday.Good Friday starts the Easter weekend in countries including the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Australia and Canada.
These are some of the main moves in financial markets:
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