Jan. 5 (UPI) — U.S. markets rose on Tuesday to rebound from losses to begin the year as oil futures surged.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 167.1 points, or 0.55%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.71% and the Nasdaq Composite ended the day up 0.95% a day after Saudi Arabia lifted a three-year blockade on neighboring Qatar in advance of the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Al-Ula.
U.S. oil futures gained 4.9% and briefly rose above $50 per barrel for the first time since February 2020. Chevron stock also rose 2.7%.
Copper — an indicator for the global economy — also increased 2%, hitting its highest level in nearly eight years.
Tuesday’s gains came after the Dow dropped 382 points, or 1.25% while the S&P 500 fell 1.48% and the Nasdaq declined 1.47% on the first day of trading in 2021.
Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Research, said the selloff “suggests that many investors might have made a New Year’s resolution to stay sober, at least for the first day or two of 2021.”
Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, however, noted that the trends that helped send stocks into highs to end 2020 — such as support from the Federal Reserve and vaccine distribution — remain in place.
“Fiscal and monetary policy are highly supportive and financial conditions are very loose,” Haefele said. “We therefore continue to expect strong global growth in 2021.”
