NEW YORK -- U.S. stocks inched higher Monday, as the Standard & Poor's 500 index steadied after back-to-back losses the past two weeks.
This week may be a calmer one for the stock market, after an uncharacteristically bumpy stretch shook what had been a smooth ride higher for stocks this year. Few market-moving events are on the calendar this week, and the highlight will likely arrive when central bankers from around the world gather in Wyoming for a conference.
The S&P 500 rose 2.82 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,428.37 after it and other indexes flipped between small gains and losses throughout the day. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 29.24, or 0.1 percent, to 21,703.75, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 3.40 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,213.13.
The modest moves were a return to form for the market. It's had just four days this year in which the S&P 500 has dropped by more than 1 percent, which is well below the typical number in recent decades. But half those instances occurred in the past two weeks, stoked by worries about discord in Washington and the potential for war abroad.
"One of the reasons the market has held in and performed well recently -- although it's wobbled a bit in the last two weeks -- has been earnings," said Ernie Cecilia, chief investment officer at Bryn Mawr Trust. "Without the earnings that we saw, it would have been a much more difficult period of time for the market."
Companies are mostly done reporting their results for the spring quarter, and their growth in profits was stronger than analysts expected. Not only that, but businesses also reported higher revenue. That's encouraging given the struggles many companies have had in recent years to grow amid the still-sluggish global economy.
Cecilia said he sees few potential drivers that could move markets much in either direction in the coming weeks, and he expects the market to "trade in some sort of sideways fashion."
One potential highlight could be the upcoming gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyo., for central bankers, economists and policymakers. Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen and European Central Bank head Mario Draghi are both expected to speak at the symposium, which begins Thursday and is hosted by the Fed's regional bank in Kansas City, Mo.
Stimulus from central banks has been one of the main reasons for the stock market's surge since the recession. But the Fed is now slowly raising interest rates and preparing to pare the huge collection of bonds that it bought after the 2008 financial crisis. Investors are wondering when the European Central Bank may follow suit.
Jackson Hole has been the site of market-moving news in the past, including in 2010 when former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke signaled the possibility of the central bank embarking on another round of bond buying to shore up the economy.
Another wild card for markets may lie in Asia, where U.S. and South Korean forces on Monday started their annual joint military exercises. Tensions are higher than usual with North Korea, and Pyongyang in the past has responded to the drills with weapons tests and a string of belligerent rhetoric.
Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.14 Monday to settle at $47.37 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost $1.06 to $51.66 a barrel.
Business on 08/22/2017