Stocks extended gains by a narrow margin; losing momentum due to jobless claim increase

QUARRY BAY, Hong Kong - July 26, 2021 - PRLog -- Stocks resurged after Monday's fire sell-off, currently on momentum to hit the record levels that was set last week. Economic expansion continues to dominate concerns over COVID-19 variant as analysts perceive it as minor threat for the mean time.

The surge's momentum slowed down after the print on jobless claims unexpectedly showed an increase, hitting a fresh record of pandemic-era low. The estimated claim count was 360,000 but the filings ended almost 420,000 for the past week. Traders are using this data as a symbol of the economic standing and market status. The unexpected hit created uncertainty for the ongoing economic rebound, however, analysts are saying that the recovery is bound to encounter bumps like these, hence, pacifying concerns and making its effects minimal.

This week's round of Q2 earnings report was led by the big boys including Verizon, Netflix, Coca-Cola, Chipotle and Johnson & Johnson. All these companies toppled market expectations and exceeded them, and was joined by AT&T and Southwest this Thursday. The new data shows surging demands while economic recovery is underway. The highlight on the earnings was momentarily brushed aside when the sell-off happened, but now that the market has recovered, traders are focusing back on them.

Thursday's performance can be summarized as follows:

• NASDAQ Composite Index stepped up to 14,684.60 after gaining 0.36% or 52.64 points.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 34,823.35 and went up by 0.07% or 25.35 points.
• S&P 500 Index moved higher by 0.20% or 8.79 points and wrapped at 4,367.48.
• U.S. 10 Year Treasury yield moved down to 1.2650%.
• Gold stepped up by 0.23% or $4.10 and now at $1,807.50 an ounce.
• Crude jumped higher by 1.99% or $1.40 at $71.70 per barrel.

Cryptocurrencies are as volatile as ever, with little movements showing improvement on value. Elon Musk announced that he may be accepting Bitcoin for Tesla purchases again soon. Below are the widely known cryptocurrencies and their value:

• Bitcoin (BTC) - $32,173.81
• Etherium (ETH) - $2,005.89
• Ripple (XPR) - $0.5897
• Bitcoin Cash (BCH) - $439.22
• LiteCoin (LTC) - $119.62

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