Stock market news for August 6, 2024

Stocks jumped Tuesday, recovering some losses from the previous three trading days as investors took a pause from recession fears and Japanese equities rallied.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 294.39 points, or 0.76%, to end at 38,997.66. The S&P 500 advanced 1.04%, closing at 5,240.03. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.03% to settle at 16,366.85. The major averages snapped a three-day stretch of losses.

All 11 sectors of the broad market index were positive for the day. Several megacap tech stocks also rebounded after a sharp pullback on Monday. Nvidia rose 3.8%, while Meta Platforms advanced 3.9%.

Helping sentiment was a rebound in Japanese stocks. The Nikkei 225 posted its best day since October 2008, soaring 10.2%. That surge comes a day after the benchmark suffered its worst session since 1987, losing 12.4%.

Volatility will likely remain elevated in the near term as the yen carry trade continues to unwind, said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there were some more pressure in the coming weeks, but I do think that the growth scare is overdone,” he said.

The labor market is still relatively healthy despite some cooling, and other economic indicators still appear robust, Mayfield added. “While I think the market volatility could continue, I’m less worried about the underlying fundamentals.”

The moves follow a sharp sell-off during Monday trading amid concerns over the state of the economy. The 30-stock Dow dropped 1,033.99 points, or 2.6%, while the S&P 500 slid 3%. Both indexes notched their worst sessions since September 2022. The Nasdaq Composite shed 3.4%.

A major unwind in the yen carry trade also contributed to the volatility. The Bank of Japan last week raised interest rates, contributing to a rise in the yen. That’s affected the practice of traders borrowing in the cheaper currency to purchase other global assets. However, the yen retreated Tuesday following sharp spikes that added to worries over the carry trade.