Equities staged a midday rally, with the Nasdaq gaining 0.74 percent and the S&P 500 Index 0.17 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Averaged 0.14 percent on the day. Major indexes bounced off long-term support levels that have held in 2018, which is a positive sign for investors.
Major market sectors diverged in their performance. SPDR Technology (XLK) rallied 1.38 percent, while SPDR Financials (XLF) slid 1.39 percent. Healthcare, industrials and consumer discretionary all saw small gains in line with the major indexes.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed 7.1 million job openings in October. The data indicates there are one million more job openings than the number of unemployed.
November producer and consumer price indexes are due midweek. Analysts believe core CPI will rise 0.2 percent. The PPI gained 0.6 percent in October, but it is expected to decline 0.1 percent in November.
China’s consumer and producer inflation was slower than expected. Consumer prices fell 0.3 percent in November and producer prices dipped 0.2 percent.
British Prime Minister Theresa May canceled a vote on the Brexit plan. The news sank the pound by 1.5 percent against the dollar and pulled the euro 0.5 percent lower. iShares MSCI United Kingdom (EWU) fell 1.19 percent.
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3 percent to $51 a barrel. WTI hasn’t closed below $50 in 2018. Natural gas was stable at $4.50 per mmBTU.
Tuesday brings the National Federation of Independent Business small business confidence index. November retail sales will be out on Friday along with various flash PMIs for December.
Adobe (ADBE), Costco (COST), Ciena (CIEN) and SodaStream (SODA) are highlights in a light week for earnings reports.