Stocks, Bitcoin Rally After Jobs, New-Home Sales Beat
S&P 500 rose to 7,253, Nasdaq 100 to 27,964 and Bitcoin neared $81,600 after March job openings and new-home sales topped estimates.
U.S. stocks and bitcoin rose on May 5 after economic reports showed March job openings and new single-family home sales exceeded forecasts. The S&P 500 climbed to 7,253, the Nasdaq 100 reached 27,964 and Bitcoin traded near $81,266.
The Labor Department’s JOLTS report recorded 6.866 million job openings in March, slightly above a roughly 6.84 million consensus. Hires increased by 655,000 to 5.6 million for the month.
New single-family home sales rose 7.4% in March to a 682,000 annualized rate, above the roughly 650,000 estimate. Months of supply tightened to 8.5 and the median new-home price eased to about $387,400.
The Institute for Supply Management’s services index for April came in at 53.6, below the 53.7 estimate but above the 50 threshold that indicates expansion.
Equity indexes moved higher during the session, with the S&P advancing from about 7,200 to 7,253 and the Nasdaq 100 reaching 27,964. Bitcoin recovered roughly $1,000 from intraday lows to trade near $81,266.
Market participants noted that measures of services prices and higher oil costs remain elevated. Investors said they are watching upcoming consumer, labor and inflation reports for further confirmation.
A market commentator wrote on social media, ‘The U.S. economy didn’t flinch.’
JOLTS reports track job openings and hires. New-home sales are an annualized estimate of signed contracts for newly built single-family homes and can be volatile month to month. ISM readings above 50 indicate expansion in the services sector.
