Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] There has been more seesaw action, but all (negative) things considered, the stock market is holding up reasonably well. The main negatives include:

• The continued weakness in the dollar, which is being construed as a move driven by growth concerns, deficit concerns, and waning confidence/interest in U.S. assets on the part of foreign investors. The U.S. Dollar Index is down 0.9% to 99.92.
• China responding to the 145% tariff rate the U.S. has placed on Chinese imports with a 125% tariff rate for U.S. imports.
• The dour University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment for April, which included a spike in year-ahead inflation expectations from 5.0% to 6.7% and long-run inflation expectations from 4.1% to 4.4%.
• The 10-yr note yield climbing above 4.50% (currently up 17 basis points to 4.56%).

The Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500, though, are little changed in percentage terms thanks to the relative strength of mega-cap constituents. The Vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF (MGK) is down 0.1%.