Technology stocks started the week on a strong note as Apple’s 4-for-1 stock split came into effect Monday. Gains in Tesla’s shares, which surged around 13% on Monday following the 5-for-1 stock split, also helped the Nasdaq hit another record high on the first trading day of the week.
The US Labor Department reported better-than-expected jobless claims data on Thursday, followed by strong job data on Friday. The US economy regained 1.4 million jobs in August, while economists had expected just 1.2 million job additions. The unemployment rate declined to 8.4% in August, from the previous month’s 10.2%.
Despite a slowdown in covid-19 cases in the US, Wall Street closed lower last week amid heavy profit-taking in tech stocks. The profit-taking was triggered by analyst reports suggesting tech stock were overvalued after their strong rally amid shelter-in-place orders.
Performance of US Indices
US stocks closed lower on Friday, but remained well ahead their session lows, in a session of volatile trading. With technology and other pandemic-driven stocks continuing to feel the heat of profit-taking, some earlier unloved industries found some support on the last session of the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 159.42 points to close at 28133.31 on Friday, after declining 628 points earlier in the session. The 30-stock index slipped 1.8% last week, following a gain of 2.6% in the previous week. The S&P 500 index declined 2.3% during the week, while the Nasdaq Composite Index saw a weekly drop of 3.3%.
Top US Stocks of the Week
Shares of Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc (NASDAQ: AIMT) spiked more than 170% on Monday after Nestle SA announced plans to acquire the company for an enterprise value of $2.6 billion.
Tesla, Inc’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares climbed 13% on Monday following the stock split. Shares of the EV maker lost around 7% last week.
Shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) rose 3.4% on Monday as the stock started to trade on a split-adjusted basis. Shares of the iPhone maker was down 3% for the week.
Zoom Video Communications, Inc’s (NASDAQ: ZM) shares climbed 41% on Tuesday after the company posted upbeat quarterly results and issued a strong outlook for the third quarter. The stock posted gains of 24% last week.
Shares of Guess?, Inc. (NYSE: GES) surged 12% on Wednesday following upbeat Q2 results. The stock ended the week 6% higher.
At Home Group Inc’s (NYSE: HOME) shares nosedived 26% on Wednesday despite the company reporting upbeat quarterly results. The stock closed the week 20% lower.
On Thursday, Five Below, Inc’s (NASDAQ: FIVE) shares rose 9% after the company reported stronger-than-expected Q2 results. The stock gained 12% during the week.
Shares of Conn’s Inc (NASDAQ: CONN) dropped 16% on Thursday following the release of Q2 results. Conn’s shares fell around 8% last week.
Performance of European Indices
European stocks closed lower on Friday due to a sell-off in the tech sector for the second straight session. On the economic data front, the recent PMI numbers showed that Eurozone’s construction sector had shrunk at the fastest rate in the last three months. Covid-19 infections also continued to rise in Europe. The European Union is considering imposing sanctions on Russia over the poisoning of Alexei Navalny
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index declined 1.1% on Friday to close the week 1.9% lower. The German DAX 30 slipped 1.7% on Friday, closing the week down by 1.5%. The French CAC 40 fell 0.8%, while the FTSE 100 index declined 2.8% last week.
Top European Stocks of the Week
Shares of Suez climbed 18% on Monday after Veolia offered to acquire a stake in the French utility company.
Nestle’s shares edged lower on Monday despite the Swiss food and drink giant offering to buy the US-based Aimmune Therapeutics.
Shares of Melrose Industries climbed 12% on Wednesday despite the company reporting a decline in profits for the first half. Investor sentiment was boosted by the company reporting upbeat trading during the summer months.
Caixabank’s stock jumped more than 12% on Thursday after Spain’s bank and Bankia entered into merger talks.
The Forex Market
The British pound fell versus the US dollar last week to record its biggest loss since mid-June. The decline came amid rising concerns over the lack of progress in Brexit talks following comments from European Union’s negotiator Michel Barnier asking the UK to engage with the EU on issues including fisheries and fair competition. GBP/USD closed the week down around 0.6%.
The CAD/USD traded mostly flat versus on Friday after Canadian data showed the country adding 245,800 jobs in August and the unemployment rate easing to 10.2%, from July’s 10.9% reading. However, the loonie gained 0.2% against the greenback for the week.
The Crypto Market
Bitcoin took a beating last week, with value of around $50 billion being wiped off from global cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin prices declined below the $10,000 mark, after hitting $12,000 earlier in the week.
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