From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Stocks on Wall Street shook off a downbeat start and ended broadly higher Friday, though the rebound was not enough to erase their losses for the week.
The S&P 500 rose 1.1% after having been down 0.9% in the early going. The gain snapped a four-day losing streak for the benchmark index, which still posted its fourth losing week in the last five.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.9% after a sell-off in technology stocks eased.
The latest choppy trading comes a day after the S&P 500 closed out its worst quarter since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. Its performance in the first half of 2022 was the worst since the first six months of 1970.
The S&P 500 has been in a bear market since last month, meaning an extended decline of 20% or more from its most recent peak. It's now down 20.2% from the peak it set at the beginning of this year.
Bond yields fell significantly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps set mortgage rates, fell to 2.89% from 2.97% last Thursday. The yield on the 2-year Treasury slipped to 2.83% from 2.92%.
The market's deep slump this year reflects investors' anxiety over surging inflation and the possibility that higher interest rates could bring on a recession.
"What we're seeing today is reflective of really what we're going to see here in July, which is continued pressure on the markets, unless we see outsized economic reports on jobs or inflation, or some more meaningful change in Fed policy," said Greg Bassuk, CEO at AXS Investments.
The S&P 500 rose 39.95 to 3,825.33. Roughly 85% of the stocks in the index finished higher.
The Dow gained 321.83 points to 31,097.26, while the Nasdaq rose 99.11 points to 11,127.85. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 19.77 points, or 1.2%, to 1,727.76.
The market's latest gyrations precede a long holiday weekend. Financial markets in the U.S. will be closed on Monday for Independence Day.
Wall Street remains concerned about the risk of a recession as economic growth slows and the Federal Reserve aggressively hikes interest rates. The Fed is raising rates to purposefully slow economic growth to help cool inflation, but could potentially go too far and bring on a recession.
Economic data over the last few weeks has shown that inflation remains hot and the economy is slowing. The latter has raised hopes on Wall Street that the Fed will eventually ease off its aggressive push to raise rates, which have been weighing on stocks, especially pricier sectors like technology. Analysts don't expect much of a rally for stocks until there are solid signs that inflation is cooling.
The latest economic update on Friday for the manufacturing sector shows a continued slowdown in growth in June that was sharper than economists expected. On Thursday, a report showed that a measure of inflation that is closely tracked by the Fed rose 6.3% in May from a year earlier, unchanged from its level in April.
Earlier this week, a worrisome report showed that consumer confidence slipped to its lowest level in 16 months. The government has also reported that the U.S. economy shrank at an annual rate of 1.6% in the first quarter and weak consumer spending was a key part of that contraction.
Kohl's dove 19.6% after the department store's potential sale fell apart amid the shaky retail environment as consumers lose confidence and cut spending. Kohl's had entered exclusive talks with Franchise Group, the owner of Vitamin Shop and other retail outlets, for a deal that was potentially worth about $8 billion.
Other retailers, restaurant chains and companies that rely on direct consumer spending helped lead the market rally. Amazon rose 3.2%, Home Depot gained 1.8% and Starbucks rose 3.8%.
Banks and health care stocks also notched gains. Wells Fargo rose 1.9% and Johnson & Johnson closed 1.1% higher.
Technology stocks largely bounced back from their broad morning slump, though many still closed lower. Chipmaker Micron slid 3% after giving investors a disappointing profit forecast amid concerns about falling demand. That weighed heavily on other chipmakers. Nvidia fell 4.2% and Qualcomm lost 3.3%.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
The National Post is reporting that Rex Murphy, the pundit and columnist who hosted a national call-in radio show for decades, has died.
Another suspect is in custody in connection with the gold heist at Toronto Pearson International Airport last year, police say.
Careful attention to government statements and legislation is required to get a handle on the level of risk British Columbians’ information is under, as investigators probe multiple breaches under a continued barrage of attacks.
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
A Conservative government led by Pierre Poilievre would not legislate on, nor use the notwithstanding clause, on abortion, his office says, as anti-abortion protesters gather on Parliament Hill.
Hailey and Justin Bieber are going to be parents. The couple announced the news on Thursday on Instagram, both sharing a video that showcases Hailey Bieber's growing belly.
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
The Oscar-winning team behind the nearly US$6 billion blockbuster 'Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit' trilogies is reuniting to produce two new films.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
A P.E.I. lighthouse and a New Brunswick river are being honoured in a Canada Post series.
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.