(Repeats from Friday, no changes to text. Updates chart)
** S&P 500 .SPX rallies on strong recovery hopes, finishes up 1.6%. Quarter-end rebalancing leads to choppy trade In any event, for the Dow .DJI , out of the blue, a red line strikes This, with the Nasdaq .IXIC on less than firm footing the SPX showing divergent paths and small caps .RUT being tossed around And for the China Large-cap ETF FXI.P a shooting star can suggest burnout Vast majority of sectors advance: Defensive plays and energy most stable, while communication services stumble
** Energy .SPNY leaps 3%. Oil stocks rise on fears Suez Canal blockage may last weeks Tech .SPLRCT surges 2.5%. Applied Materials AMAT.O best in sector, up 12%, on $7.5 bln share buyback plan and Intel's INTC.O $20 bln plan to expand manufacturing lifts chip equipment makers Materials .SPLRCM gain 2.5%. Nucor (NYSE:NUE) NUE.N hits near 13-yr high after co to build new tube mill in Kentucky and steel stocks jump ahead of U.S. infrastructure spending announcement As for precious metals mining shares .XAU , there's pressure in the shaft Industrials .SPLRCI up 2.2%. Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU) KSU.N jumps on $25 bln buyout deal with Canadian Pacific Railway CP.TO
** Consumer Discretionary .SPLRCD dips 0.2%. Travel-related shares slip on renewed virus curbs in Europe Communication Services .SPLRCL slumps 1.9%. ViacomCBS VIAC.O plummets 50% as Wall Street analysts turn bearish after media firm's nearly $3 bln capital raise, and peer Discovery Inc DISCA.O also dives 46% in volatile trade Meanwhile, GameStop (NYSE:GME) GME.N tumbles, then bounces after videogame retailer says might cash in on meteoric rise in its share price to fund e-commerce expansion SPX performance YTD:
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ SP 500 2021 YTD THROUGH MARCH 26
https://tmsnrt.rs/3syCo7E
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Lance Tupper and Terence Gabriel are Reuters market analysts. The views expressed are their own)