Tags: financial markets

Dow Soars 450 Points as Investors Cheer Apple Earnings

Dow Soars 450 Points as Investors Cheer Apple Earnings
Apple store in Hamburg, Germany (Christian Charisius/AP)

Friday, 05 May 2023 10:59 AM EDT

Wall Street's main indexes gained Friday as Apple's upbeat results underscored resilience in corporate earnings, while a stronger-than-expected jobs report eased fears of an imminent economic downturn.

Apple Inc gained 4.4% on better-than-expected results, helped by strong iPhone sales and notable inroads in India and other newer markets, fueling a near 2% advance in technology stocks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 450 points, or 1.36% as of 10:53 a.m. EST, while Nasdaq had soared by 1.73% and the S&P 500 was up 1.54%.

Investors appeared to take in stride data showing U.S. employers boosted hiring in April while raising wages, pointing to sustained labor market strength that could prompt the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates higher for some time.

The Labor Department's report showed non-farm payrolls increased by 253,000 last month, higher than economists' expectations of 180,000.

Wages increased 4.4% year-on-year in April after climbing 4.3% in March, while the unemployment rate fell to 3.4%.

"This is a strong report and shows that the labor market is resilient. It bails out the Fed for raising another quarter point," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities.

"It's been a tough week for the stock market, the regional banking problems have raised the fear factor, but Apple earnings came in strong. Stocks are coming up from near-term oversold condition."

Traders are betting the Fed will start easing the policy rate by September, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool, compared with July before the release of the jobs data.

The Fed raised its interest rate by 25 basis points as expected on Wednesday, but Chair Jerome Powell noted it was too early to say with certainty that the rate-hike cycle was over as inflation remains the chief concern.

Wall Street fell on Thursday after PacWest Bancorp's move to explore strategic options deepened concerns about the health of regional banks, pulling down shares of peers and big banks such as JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo & Co.

PacWest rebounded on Friday with a 48.3% gain, while Western Alliance Bancorp bounced back 32.0%. Western Alliance on Thursday denied a report that it was exploring a potential sale.

Following upbeat results from megacap companies, analysts expect profits for S&P 500 companies in the first quarter to decline 0.9% from a year earlier, according to Refinitiv data, compared with a 5.1% drop expected at the start of April.

Used-car retailer Carvana Co. jumped 30.8% as it expects to post a profit in the current quarter and plans to further bring down excess used-car inventory.

Lyft Inc slumped 19% as the ride-hailing company's strategy to claw back market share from rival Uber Technologies Inc with lower fares stoked concerns about a hit to its profit margins.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 6.06-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and a 3.47-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded four new 52-week highs and two new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 37 new highs and 43 new lows.

© 2025 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.


StreetTalk
Wall Street's main indexes gained Friday as Apple's upbeat results underscored resilience in corporate earnings, while a stronger-than-expected jobs report eased fears of an imminent economic downturn.
financial markets
495
2023-59-05
Friday, 05 May 2023 10:59 AM
Newsmax Media, Inc.

Sign up for Newsmax’s Daily Newsletter

Receive breaking news and original analysis - sent right to your inbox.

(Optional for Local News)
Privacy: We never share your email address.
Join the Newsmax Community
Read and Post Comments
Please review Community Guidelines before posting a comment.
 
Get Newsmax Text Alerts
TOP

Newsmax, Moneynews, Newsmax Health, and Independent. American. are registered trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc. Newsmax TV, and Newsmax World are trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc.

NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved