Market Recap for Week Ended April 20:

Positive direction

Solid earnings reports helped propel the major U.S. stock indexes to small gains, sending the S&P 500’s year-to-date total return back into positive territory. The Dow rose more than 200 points on Monday and Tuesday, but stocks held steady Wednesday and closed the week with declines on Thursday and Friday.   

Banking profits 

Major banks were among the biggest winners as quarterly earnings season got under way. In the first quarter, combined net income at the six largest U.S. banks climbed 24% from the same period a year ago. That tops the 17% earnings gain that’s forecast for companies across the S&P 500, according to FactSet.

Yields climb

The yield of the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond rose to around 2.95% on Friday, the highest level of 2018. After starting the year around 2.40%, the yield was within close range of potentially breaching 3.00%, a level not seen since January 2014.

Flattening curve

On Wednesday, the gap between short- and long-term U.S. Treasury bond yields narrowed to its smallest amount in more than a decade. The difference between the yields of the 2-year Treasury and the 10-year Treasury was less than 0.43 of a percentage point. The so-called yield curve is considered a key indicator of sentiment about economic growth and the outlook for interest rates.

Source: John Hancock Investments, https://wmr.jhinvestments.com