If it’s Tuesday, it must mean the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is on the rise.
For the 18th straight Tuesday, the Dow added?123.57 (0.82 percent) points for a record close at 15,215.25. With the exception of four components, 26 advanced on the day. Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) had the distinction of the top Dow gainer, increasing?2.8%.
Also seeing a record day was the S&P 500 index (SPX). It was up 16.57 points (1.01%) to close at 1,650.34. Financials shares shone among the 10 top industry groups.?
One interesting market statistic from Art Hogan, a Lazard Capital Market LLC market strategist, was the following via MarketWatch, “We?ve had 177 days without a 5% correction, and since 2007 we?ve had 512 central-bank interest-rate cuts, which is probably one of the more important numbers in the whole string of events.?
He also cited Tuesday’s?better-than-expected?National Federation of Independent Business report, whose April data showed improving conditions for members, as a contributor to the rising market.?
Not to be left out on this positive Tuesday was the VIX. It closed at 12.77, up 1.75% (.22%).
Earlier in the trading day, the Wall Street Journal’s Kaitlyn Kiernan noted the VIX was moving in the same direction as the stocks–something it usually doesn’t do.?
At one point, the VIX rose as high as 5.3%.?
Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer?s Investment Research said via the Wall Street Journal,??Conventional thinking is that the VIX moves against the market, but it doesn?t always have to be that way.??
You’ll see the VIX moving in tandem with stocks should the demand for S&P 500 index options increase the prices of the contracts, noted Kiernan, and with the market continuing to go higher, investors could be looking to protect their gains through protective options on this index.
This isn’t the first time the VIX has moved in the same direction as the market: in the last month it has done so six times.?