The S&P 500 Hits New Record High On April Fool's Day

Summary

• With Good Friday, it was a short trading week.
• The S&P 500 saw a new record high.
• The index moved back toward the middle of the redzone forecasts range we've been tracking for weeks.

With Good Friday, it was a short trading week, which made the new record high for the S&P 500 (Index: SPX) all the more delightful, because it came on April Fool's Day!

Not that it's particularly surprising, because the index moved back toward the middle of the redzone forecasts range we've been tracking for weeks.

Keeping with the spirit of a short week, we'll keep the analysis light for this edition of the S&P 500 chaos series. We're busy behind the scenes advancing the chart ahead to cover 2021-Q2, which we'll break out next Monday. Until then, here are the headlines that caught our attention from the trading week ending on April 1, 2021.

Monday, March 29, 2021

• Fed minions say no rate hike anytime soon and claim they won't keep rates low to keep government borrowing cheap:
  • Fed's Waller says central 'a long way' from a rate hike
  • Fed will not keep interest rates low for government's benefit, Waller says
• Bigger trouble developing in Brazil as country pays price for substituting welfare for real growth:
  • Brazil services confidence in March slumps to lowest since last June: survey
  • Millions in Brazil thrown back into poverty as pandemic aid dries up
• Former BOJ minion thinks more negative rates possible, current BOJ minion wants to keep buying stock funds to boost Japanese market:
  • BOJ has room to deepen negative rates with policy review, says ex-central banker
  • Kuroda vows to keep up BOJ's ETF purchases: Asahi newspaper
• S&P 500 ends a hair lower; hedge fund default concerns hit banks

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

• Signs and portents for the U.S. economy:
  • Oil falls as Suez Canal reopens, dollar rallies; eyes on OPEC+ meeting
  • Real-economy stirrings show U.S. leaves Europe in the dust
• Fed minions says cash on sidelines key to growth, really excited for post-lockdown growth, want to reform money market funds to keep solvent:
  • Fed's Barkin sees excess savings driving economy for years
  • Fed's Bostic says summer months could see millions rehired
  • Fed's Quarles says regulators to lay out money market fund reforms in July
• Bigger trouble developing in Japan:
  • Japan's retail sales fall for third straight month
• Positive recovery signs in South Korea:
  • South Korea's Feb factory activity grows at fastest pace in eight months
• BOJ minion tries to set optimistic expectations:
  • BOJ's Kuroda offers cautiously upbeat view on global, Japan growth
• Wall Street dips, with technology the biggest drag

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

• Signs and portents for the U.S. economy:
  • U.S. private payrolls post biggest gain in six months; housing market cooling
  • Biden proposes $2 trillion "once-in-a-generation" investment in U.S. economy
    • Biden's job and infrastructure plan will fund projects over 8 years -sources
  • Oil falls 2% as fresh lockdowns, demand concerns weigh on OPEC+
• Fed minions expect economy to grow with COVID lockdown boot removed from necks of American businesses:
  • 'Optimistic' Fed policymakers see U.S. economy about to boom
  • Fed's Kaplan says infrastructure spending is a 'positive'
    • What's in Biden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan?
• Bigger trouble developing in Japan, Brazil:
  • Japan's factory output falls, hit by quake, chips shortage
  • Brazil's unemployment rate rises to 14.2%
• Positive recovery signs in China, Canada, Mexico:
  • China's strong factory growth in March bolsters economic recovery
  • Growth in China's services sector surges in March
  • Canada's economy grows for ninth month as pandemic recovery takes hold
  • Mexico's economy seen at pre-pandemic levels in early 2022
• ECB minions say no fast recovery in Eurozone:
  • Speed not scale key to EU recovery plans: ECB's Villeroy
• Tech lifts S&P 500, Nasdaq; indexes post gains for quarter

Thursday, April 1, 2021

• Signs and portents for the U.S. economy:
  • U.S. manufacturing sector index races to 37-year high in March: ISM
  • Oil settles up more than $2 despite OPEC+ production cuts
• Fed minions say all inflation A-OK with them in 2021:
  • Fed won't react to temporary rise in inflation this year: Daly
• Bigger trouble developing in China:
  • China's March factory activity growth lowest in almost a year: Caixin PMI
• Positive recovery signs elsewhere around world, including Canada and Eurozone:
  • Global factory recovery picks up, but cost pressures grow
  • Canadian factory activity expands at record pace in March
  • Euro zone factory activity soared in March but supply issues loom
• EU minions want to borrow, spend more; ECB minion sees inflation, but thinks economy is weak:
  • Europe should match U.S.'s economic stimulus ambition: France
  • Euro zone inflation bounce masks weak trend: Lane
• S&P 500 rides Microsoft, Amazon to record close above 4,000

Looking for a different take on the news informed and influenced investors during the Good Friday-holiday shortened trading week? Barry Ritholtz provides a succinct summary of the positives and negatives he found in the past week's markets and economics news.

Editor's Note: The summary bullets for this article were chosen by Seeking Alpha editors.