January 5, 2018: Markets opened higher again Friday following the monthly report on non-farm payrolls. The pace of job creation appears to investors to be just right: not so slow as to boost unemployment, but not so fast as to push the Fed into more and bigger rate hikes. Energy was the day’s big laggard while tech and healthcare led markets higher. All three major indexes posted new intra-day highs Friday. WTI crude oil for February delivery settled at $61.44 a barrel, down 0.9% for the day but up 1.7% for the week. February gold added less than 0.1% on the day to settle at $1,322.30 for an eleventh consecutive winning session and a weekly gain of 1%. Equities were headed for a higher close shortly before the bell as the DJIA traded up 0.84% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.68%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.83%. https://247wallst.com/economy/2018/01/05/disappointing-payrolls-gain-may-have-a-silver-lining/

Bitcoin futures for January delivery traded at $16,390, up about 10% on the CME after opening at $15,085 this morning. Only 753 contracts had been traded in the session and open interest is just 642.

The DJIA stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Friday was The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) which traded up 3.85% at $308.09. The stock’s 52-week range is $156.67 to $308.45 and the high was posted this afternoon. Volume was about 60% above the daily average of around 3 million shares. The company reportedly continues to negotiate a deal to acquire or partner with Brazil’s Embraer.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) traded up 2.30% at $118.75. The stock’s 52-week range is $80.51 to $118.77, another hit set today. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of around 7.4 million shares. The company banned several cryptocurrency-backed credit cards today.

UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) traded up 1.76% at $228.40. The stock’s 52-week range is $156.09 to $231.77. Volume was about 40% below the daily average of around 3 million. The healthcare company had no specific news.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) traded up 1.56% at $161.92. The stock’s 52-week range is $90.34 to $161.95, another new high set this afternoon. Volume was about 15% below the daily average of around 3.7 million shares. The company had no news.

Of the Dow stocks, 19 are on track to close higher Friday and 11 are set to close lower.

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