The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.2% and traded near session highs at 1:30 p.m. ET Monday. Bank stocks Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase gained along with other Dow components. Intel and Microsoft fell at the hour. Microsoft is giving up several days worth of wins.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs believe the Fed will leave the interest rate unchanged on Wednesday.
However, odds for interest rates to remain unchanged after Wednesday's Fed meeting stood low, at 26.9%, according to the CME FedWatchTool.
The S&P 500 notched a near 1% gain. Technology stocks lagged. The Nasdaq underperformed with a gain of 0.2% while the small-cap Russell 2000 showed robust gains, adding nearly 1.5%.
Solar leader Enphase Energy was a big gainer. Moderna and Dexcom also rose.
Iridium Communications on the IBD Leaderboard added 3% in the afternoon.
IBD 50 stocks Super Micro Computer, Lattice Semiconductor and Allegro MicroSystems gained ground as well. The Innovator IBD 50 posted a near 1% rally at the hour.
Dow Jones leaders Salesforce and Microsoft hovered near buy points but the index remains stuck below its 200-day line.
NYSE volume surged 25% over Friday levels while Nasdaq volume rose a modest 7%. Surging volume could signal an important asset reallocation.
Crude oil fell to $66.32 per barrel. The 10-year Treasury note added 8 basis points to give a yield of 3.47% after falling sharply last week. Bitcoin fell over 1%.
Warren Buffett To The Rescue?
Warren Buffett held talks with senior Biden administration officials over the weekend about the banking crisis, according to Bloomberg and Reuters.
The Oracle of Omaha has a reputation of throwing lifelines to banks in need from time to time. For example, in 2011 his Berkshire Hathaway helped Bank of America after the subprime mortgage meltdown and took a $5 billion stake in Goldman Sachs in 2008 after Lehman Brothers fell.
Shares of Berkshire Hathaway gained over 2% after news the fund had repurchased more than $1.8 billion of its own stock this year.
Rescue plans for failing banks also moved the stock market.
Flagstar Bank, a subsidiary of New York Community Bancorp, will buy Signature Bank's deposits. Meanwhile, SVB Financial is seeking bankruptcy protection. Its venture capital and investment banking assets may come up for sale but reports say First Citizen Bank could swoop in for the rescue.
Bank deposit outflows have stabilized for regional banks, according to reports. Nonetheless, a regional bank group wants the FDIC to provide a two-year guarantee on deposits to stop panic flows.
UBS will acquire distraught Credit Suisse for $3.2 billion. Shareholders will receive one UBS share for every 22.48 CS shares.
Elsewhere, First Republic plunged another 13% after S&P Global Ratings lowered its credit rating for the second time in a week. FRC may be in talks to raise cash through a private stock sale.
Stocks Moving Today Outside Dow Jones
Pinduoduo fell over 10% after earnings. The stock has undercut its base.
Foot Locker rose earlier but pared back to a 5% loss. Shares were approaching a 47.32 entry after earnings but have plunged below their 50-day line.
Nike, On Holding and meme stock GameStop earnings are on deck Tuesday. ONON rose above its 50-day line, also ahead of earnings.
Shares of Coinbase made a small gain after US Tiger Securities gave the stock a buy rating and 200 price target. The cup base offers a 87.73 buy point but watch for a handle and a possible lower entry.
Also outside Dow Jones, Enphase got a 5% boost after Raymond James posted a buy rating, up from hold with a price target of 225. Shares remain below the 50-day line for the solar stock.
Please follow VRamakrishnan on Twitter for more news on the stock market today.
