US stocks sharply higher; Nasdaq out front, up 2.9%
Comm Svcs leads S&P 500 sector gainers; Energy sole loser
Dollar flat; US crude collapsing >15%; gold up >1%; bitcoin up ~3%
US 10-Year Treasury yield falls to ~4.28%
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BOFA CLIENTS EXTEND US STOCK SELLING STREAK, SHIFT INTO FINANCIALS
BofA Securities data showed that last week, clients were net sellers of U.S. equities for a fourth straight week, even as the S&P 500 .SPX gained 3.4%, according to equity and quant strategist Jill Carey Hall.
Selling was driven by a third consecutive week of single‑stock outflows totaling $2.6 billion, while equity ETFs recorded $1.4 billion of inflows for a second week. Hedge funds were the largest sellers, with sales as a share of S&P 500 market value the biggest since June 2024. Retail clients also sold for a fourth week, while institutional clients turned net buyers after two weeks of selling. Clients reduced exposure across all market‑cap segments.
Corporate buybacks slowed from the prior week and, as a share of market cap, fell to their lowest level since November 2023.
Clients sold stocks in nine of 11 sectors, led by energy for a second straight week. Hall noted the four‑week average of energy single‑stock flows is the most negative in BofA’s data going back to 2008. Tech saw a second week of outflows after five weeks of inflows, while consumer sectors, industrials, real estate and utilities each posted three consecutive weeks of selling.
Financials recorded their first inflows since late December ahead of earnings season, with communication services also attracting buying.
ETF flows were mixed: clients bought broad equity ETFs across major styles and larger size segments, but sold small caps. Most sector ETFs saw outflows, led by discretionary and tech, while utilities and financials ETFs posted the strongest inflows.
Separately, Citi said global equity positioning remained “tactically fragile,” with recent gains driven largely by short covering rather than new risk appetite.
(Terence Gabriel, Medha Singh)
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