With expectations growing that Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro will be ousted and that U.S. oil companies could reenter Venezuelan oil fields, the three major New York stock indexes closed higher together.
On the 5th (U.S. Eastern time) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 594.79 points, or 1.23%, from the previous session to close at 48,977.18. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 rose 43.58 points, or 0.64%, to 6,902.05, and the Nasdaq composite added 160.19 points, or 0.69%, to 23,395.82.
In particular, the Dow Jones index not only set an intraday record high but also finished at a record high on a closing basis.
Buying focused on traditional industries on hopes of Venezuela opening its market. Chevron, the only major U.S. oil company currently operating in Venezuela, jumped 5.10% on the day. Exxon Mobil rose 2.21%, and ConocoPhillips added 2.59%.
Oilfield services and equipment makers also drew attention. Schlumberger, the largest by market cap within the oil equipment and services index, climbed 8.96%, and Baker Hughes jumped 4.09%. Halliburton also surged 7.84%.
Defense stocks were also strong after President Trump mentioned the possibility of military operations against Cuba and Colombia. Lockheed Martin rose 2.92% on the day.
Bank stocks benefited as well. If the ouster of Maduro normalizes relations between the United States and Venezuela, a restructuring of Venezuela Government Bonds and state oil company (PDVSA) bonds could take place, which is expected to bring large advisory fees for investment banks and transaction brokerage revenue in the process.
JP Morgan rose 2.63%, Bank of America 1.68%, Morgan Stanley 2.55%, and Goldman Sachs 3.73% on the day.
Among big tech, Amazon and Tesla posted gains of around 3%. Apple, Nvidia, Broadcom and Microsoft fell around 1%.