Materials companies led U.S. stocks modestly higher Friday, recouping much of the market's Thursday loss and snapping a five-day losing streak for the Dow Jones industrial average.
The Dow rose 94.85 points, or 0.5 percent, to 19,827.25. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 7.62 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,271.31. The Nasdaq composite index added 15.25 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,555.33.
Despite Friday's gains, the three major stock indexes ended the week lower.
Another crop of encouraging company earnings reports helped lift the market Friday, but investors were mostly focused on events in Washington, D.C., as Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.
The major stock indexes pulled back slightly as Trump delivered remarks after taking the oath of office. Among topics of particular interest to Wall Street, the speech touched on trade and the Trump administration's intention of protecting the U.S. from "the ravages of other countries making our products, stealing our companies, and destroying our jobs."
"The market is still embracing the Trump agenda, based on the market's reaction to the speech," said Quincy Krosby, a market strategist at Prudential Financial. "Now the question the market has is, specifically, what does all of that mean in terms of trade?"
Stocks have slowed in 2017 after surging for several weeks after Election Day on investor optimism that a Trump administration and Republican Congress would usher in business-friendly policies. But the possibility of increased tariffs or trade restrictions has also loomed as a potential drag on profits for big U.S. companies.
"Historically, the market has performed best in the November-April time frame," said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research. "The Trump victory added a tail wind to this traditional seasonal factor."
Typically, stocks don't do well on Inauguration Day. Going back to 1928, the S&P has averaged a drop of 1.05 percent on inauguration days, according Bespoke Investment Group.
Beyond the presidential transition in Washington, investors pored over the latest batch of corporate earnings Friday, bidding up shares in companies that reported results that beat Wall Street's expectations.
Skyworks Solutions Inc. jumped 13 percent, the biggest gainer in the S&P 500. The stock climbed $10.21 to $88.67. Citizens Financial Group Inc. gained $1.09, or 3.1 percent, to $35.82.
Traders also drove up shares in The Procter & Gamble Co. after the consumer goods maker released a strong growth forecast. The stock added $2.75, or 3.2 percent, to $87.45.
Strong subscriber numbers helped lift AT&T Inc., giving a boost to phone company stocks overall. AT&T added 45 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $41.45.
Benchmark U.S. crude rose $1.05, or 2 percent, to close at $52.42 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added $1.33, or 2.5 percent, to close at $55.49 a barrel in London.
Bond prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note held steady at 2.47 percent. Yields have been rising as investors expect inflation to increase.
Gold dropped $3.40 to settle at $1,204.90 an ounce, while silver fell 3 cents to $17.03 an ounce. Copper slipped a penny to $2.63 a pound.
Business on 01/21/2017