The markets finished the day with a strong gain after starting mixed. Strong moves in tech stocks and a recovery in transportation stocks helped support the strong rally today which ultimately pulled the Dow out of the red and positive by 200. The S&P 500 closed higher on the day by 40 and the Nasdaq added 149.

Sector News

Transports were a big focus today as the finally flipped back into the positive with their first fain in 12 trading days. Technical traders note the near perfect bounce off the 200 day moving average.

Oil was one of the better performers today as the price returned back towards the highs of it's recent range. The move came on news that the Saudi Oil minister commented that he would stand behind the March oil cuts.

Semiconductors were higher on the day thanks in part to a deal announcement from Nvida. The sector as a whole enjoyed a broad based rally off the 200 day moving average where it pulled back to Friday.

Stock News

Boeing (BA  ) was by far the biggest name in the news today as the company saw shares tumble on news of a fatal plane crash in Ethiopia. The crash was the second in a year from it's 737 Max 8 airliner which caused Ethiopian Airlines to ground the rest of it's 737 Max 8 fleet. The Chinese government announced the same actions shortly after. The drop in share prices held back the Dow by about 1%.

Mellanox Technologies (MLNX  ) shares blasted to new highs today as the company agreed to be bought by Nvidia for $125 per share in a $6.9 billion deal. This goes on record as the largest acquisition ever for Nvidia which outbid Intel for the deal to acquire the data center company.

Apple (AAPL  ) shares enjoyed a strong day today as the company was upgraded to buy at Bank of America, completely reversing it's call in November. The analyst says that inventory levels and growth rates of the services business caused them to adjust their rating.