US Stocks Rally into Weekend – Nasdaq up 2%
US stock markets rallied into the weekend on Friday, closing out another hectic week of trading. The Dow rose 1.50%, the S&P gained 1.81%, and the Nasdaq pushed up 2.06% by the end of another choppy session. US Treasury yields climbed again, locking in their biggest weekly gains in nearly two decades. The 2-year closed up 9.8 basis points at 3.960%, and the 10-year finished up 6.5 basis points at 4.490%, having touched nearly 4.6% during the day. Despite rising yields, the dollar plummeted to fresh annual lows, with the DXY down another 0.65% to close at 100.10. Oil prices rebounded, with Brent up 2.26% to $64.76 and WTI up 2.38% to $61.50. Gold continued its rally, gaining nearly 2% on the day to close at a record $3,235.66 an ounce.
Dollar and Treasuries Under Pressure from Trump
Extreme volatility has rocked global markets in recent weeks as President Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on US trading partners, triggering widespread financial panic. Two of the world’s traditional safe-haven assets—the dollar and US Treasuries—have been under pressure, with yields experiencing their biggest weekly move in nearly 20 years. Normally, such conditions would push the dollar higher. However, the US 10-year yield has surged nearly 19% from a low of 3.86% on April 4th to a high of 4.592% on Friday, while the DXY has dropped 4%, falling from 103.18 to a low of 99.01 in the same period. Traders will continue to monitor the ongoing flight from US safe-haven assets, but for now, it’s shaping up to be a “sell dollars, wear diamonds” environment.
Quiet Calendar Day to Start a Busy Week
The macroeconomic calendar is light today, so traders expect geopolitical developments to drive market flows. Despite the calm start, there’s plenty of information for investors to digest before the calendar picks up tomorrow in a holiday-shortened week. Already, China’s New Loans data (released Sunday) beat expectations (3,640 billion vs. expected 3,020 billion), which may bolster the positive sentiment from Wall Street in today’s Asian session. However, there’s little else in terms of Tier 1 data in the first two trading sessions of the week. The US session is also quiet on data releases, but we will hear from Fed members Barkin, Waller, and Harker later today, and investors will be looking for further reassurance amid current market conditions.
