Home

A strong start to first quarter earnings season, and another round of solid economic reports helped drive U.S equities to their fourth straight week of gains. The big banks easily exceeded earnings expectations on strength in capital markets activity and the release of loan loss reserves, while surging retail sales and housing starts, falling new jobless claims, and rising consumer sentiment provided further evidence of firming economic activity. And half of all Americans have now been vaccinated with at least one shot, contributing to the growing economic optimism. 

U.S. equities continued their surge higher, gaining 2.7 percent last week to close at another record high of 4128 on the S&P 500 Index. That brought the year-to-date rise to 9.9 percent, with almost 4 percent coming just since the start of April. Further evidence of gathering economic momentum came in the form of the ISM services sector report’s rise to a record high. The minutes from the Fed’s March meeting also provided some reassurance that monetary policy is likely to remain on hold for some time. Bond yields also contributed to the positive tone by easing slightly, as the ten-year yield fell 4 basis points to 1.66 percent. That is down from its recent peak of 1.74 at the end of March. High yield spreads also narrowed to their tightest in over two years last week. The dollar eased, and the VIX index declined to its lowest level in over a year.

MINNEAPOLIS – April 9, 2021 – Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE: AMP) plans to announce its first quarter financial results on Monday, April 26, 2021 after the close of the New York Stock Exchange. The company will host a conference call to discuss the results on Tuesday, April 27, 2021 at approximately 9:00 a.m. (ET).