The broader market S&P 500 index remained volatile throughout the week. It hit a new all-time high on Thursday as hopes over Joe Biden’s stimulus plan and concerns over Donald Trump’s aggressive campaign against the newly elected president kept investors busy.
The record gains come despite a sluggish performance from pandemic loved sectors, including technology, information technology, consumer staple, and healthcare. What’s more, the communication services sector was the worst performer of the week, with a decline of around 3.5%.
The shares of Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) fell almost 12% after Twitter insider secretly recorded CEO Jack Dorsey detailing agenda for further political censorship, stating that “this is going to be much bigger than just one account (@realDOnaldTrump).”
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Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) also reported big losses of 8.6%, while Alphabet stock (NASDAQ: GOOGL) declined -2.45% in a week.
Gainers of the Week
High single-digit gains from the energy sector helped the broader market index to hit a record high this week, thanks to a rebound in oil prices. The energy sector rallied 7.43% in the week as energy giants Exxon (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX) posted double-digit gains. Several other oil and gas companies have also recorded double-digit gains in the week.
Oil prices hit the highest level in one year, with Brent crude oil is currently trading around $56.42 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate is at $53.57.
Financials is the second-best performing sector among the S&P 500 eleven sectors, thanks to strong banking stocks growth. JPMorgan’s (NYSE: JPM) stock price rose almost 4%, and Bank of America’s (NYSE: BAC) stock rallied 3.44%, while Citi Group (NYSE: C) posted more than 4.5% growth in the week.
The real estate sector also posted strong returns amid prospects for economic recovery and stimulus packages.
Utility stocks have extended the fourth-quarter rally into the New Year. The utility sector jumped 11% in the fourth quarter and grew 1.48% this week.
After a robust performance in the past three months, the Materials sector fell 0.61% this week. The sector was up 15% in the last six months.
