Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] Any attempt at a rebound appears to be getting constrained by the offsetting -- or, maybe we should say upsetting -- moves in the Treasury market and by the dollar. The 10-yr note yield has climbed to 4.57%; meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar Index is down 0.8% to 100.03.

The weakness in the dollar has been a knock on confidence, while the weakness in the Treasury market has been a knock on equity valuations.

The first-quarter earnings reporting period got its official start today with several major financial institutions reporting results. JPMorgan Chase (JPM 231.21, +4.10, +1.8%), Wells Fargo (WFC 60.24, -2.87, -4.6%), BlackRock (BLK 865.94, +7.16, +0.8%), Morgan Stanley (MS 105.10, -1.48, -1.4%), and Bank of New York Mellon (BK 74.51, -2.10, -2.7%) all reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, but only JPM and BLK are trading higher.

Turbulent market conditions, policy volatility, and weakening consumer confidence have fueled concerns about future credit quality, weaker loan demand, and slower capital markets activity.

The S&P 500 financials sector is down 0.6% today and down 8.5% for the month, underperforming the S&P 500, which is down 6.5% in April.