SP500 moved higher as traders focused on

SP500 continues to move higher as traders react to economic reports and focus on tariff news. Building Permits declined by -4.7% month-over-month in April, compared to analyst forecast of -1.2%. Housing Starts increased by 1.6%, while analysts expected that they would drop by -1%. Today, traders also had a chance to take a look at Michigan Consumer Sentiment report for May. The report showed that Consumer Sentiment declined from 52.2 in April to 50.8 in May, compared to analyst consensus of 53.4. Importantly, year-ahead inflation expectations soared from 6.5% to 7.2%. Rising inflation expectations may present a serious problem for the Fed. However, stock traders remain bullish despite inflation worries. Donald Trump announced that he would set tariff rates for trading partners in the next few weeks as it was impossible to negotiate more than 100 trading deals during a short period of time. Traders bet that this move will mark the end of the active phase of the trade war. It should be noted that today’s market move is broad, and most sectors are moving higher. Healthcare stocks are among the biggest gainers in the SP500 index today as traders have started to buy the dip.

From the technical point of view, SP500 climbed above the resistance level at 5910 – 5920 and is moving towards the next resistance level at 6000 – 6010.