Trader John Panin works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. (Richard Drew / Associated Press)
Stocks were up Friday after two days of sharp losses. Major U.S. stock indexes were up more than 1% in early trading, but they're still on track for their biggest one-week loss since late March.
Technology and internet companies were some of the hardest hit over the last two days and they led the market higher Friday. Apple climbed 2.7% to $220.18. Consumer-focused companies also rallied, as Amazon jumped 3.8% to $1,783.96 and Netflix surged 4.7% to $336.30.
The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 305 points, or 1.2%, to 25,358. The Nasdaq composite surged 138 points, or 1.9%, to 7,467. The Russell 2000 index climbed 17 points, or 1.2%, to 1,563. That index, which is made up of smaller and more U.S.-focused companies, has fallen into a 10% “correction” since reaching a record high at the end of August.
On the New York Stock Exchange, winners outnumbered losers eight to one.
Stocks in Europe and Asia also recovered some of their recent losses. The French CAC 40 and the DAX in Germany both rose 0.8%, and Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.7%. Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 0.5% after Thursday’s loss of nearly 4%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng surged 2.1%. The Kospi in South Korea rose 1.5%.
The market's recent losing streak started when strong economic data and positive comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell helped set off a wave of selling in the bond market. Investors were betting that the U.S. economy would keep growing at a healthy pace. The sales pushed bond prices lower and yields higher. That drove interest rates sharply higher, which worried investors who felt that a big increase in interest rates could eventually stifle economic growth. Higher yields also make bonds more appealing to investors versus stocks.
The biggest losses went to stocks that have led the market in recent years, including technology companies, as well as companies that do better when economic growth speeds up, such as industrial firms.
Banks rose as they began to report their third-quarter results. Citigroup jumped 2.4% to $70.04. Last year's corporate tax cut and rising interest rates have helped banks make more money.
Bond prices turned lower as the stock market stabilized. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.16% from 3.13%.
High-dividend stocks lagged behind the rest of the market, and utilities and household goods makers were little changed. Those stocks held up a bit better than the rest of the market over the last six days. Investors view them as relatively safe, steady assets that look better when growth is uncertain and the rest of the market is in turmoil.
U.S. crude oil rose 0.6% to $71.43 a barrel in in New York. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 0.6% to $80.77 a barrel in London.
The dollar rose to 112.17 yen, from 111.94 yen. The euro fell to $1.1548, from $1.1594.
7:20 a.m.: This article was updated with market prices and context.
6:45 a.m.: This article was updated with figures from the early minutes of trading.
This article was originally published at 6:40 a.m.
