Stocks Rebound after Two Straight Days of Losses

Stocks rebounded sharply in trading today following two straight days of losses as investors’ sentiment was lifted by solid euro zone economic data and comments from St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard. Despite the gains today, the S&P 500 posted its first weekly loss in 2013.



The Dow Jones ended the day 0.86% higher at 14,000.57, the S&P 500 ended the day 0.88% higher at 1,515.60, and the Nasdaq ended the day 0.97% higher. For the week, the Dow Jones rose 0.13%, the S&P 500 fell 0.28% and the Nasdaq fell 0.95%.

All three major indexes edged higher today as investors digested robust German economic data. Stocks extended their gains after St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said that QE will continue for a while. Earlier this week, minutes of Fed’s most recent monetary policy meeting suggested that the central bank might end its bond buying program sooner than anticipated. Speaking to CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Friday, Bullard said the Fed remains steadfast to its aggressive monetary easing measures ($85 billion worth monthly bond purchase program). “Fed policy is very easy and it's going stay easy for a long time,” Bullard told CNBC.

All sectors in the S&P 500 ended the day in green. Technology sector led the gains in the S&P 500 in trading today, ending the day 1.25% higher. Conglomerates also rose sharply today, ending the day 1.03% higher.

Among the major gainers in trading today were Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ), which ended the day 12.28% higher at $19.20, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), which ended the day 1.06% higher at $450.81, and Aruba Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: ARUN), which ended the day 22.13% higher at $25.40.

European markets ended mostly higher earlier today. Asian markets ended on a mixed note overnight.