US Indices and USD Soar in the Wake of Fed. Report
December 18, 2014 7:11 am
Asian share markets rallied on Thursday after U.S. stocks enjoyed their strongest session this year when the Federal Reserve sounded upbeat on the economy and promised to be patient in removing policy stimulus. The S&P 500 scored its best day since October 2013 on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve gave an upbeat assessment of the economy and said it would take a patient approach toward lifting interest rates. The Dow closed 288 points higher at 17,356, the S&P500 rose 40 points to close at 2,012.
The rise in yields was enough to revive U.S. Dollar bulls after a few days of caution and the currency climbed to 118.50 Yen from a low of 116.29 on Wednesday. The Euro retreated to $1.2340, after being as high as $1.2515 at one stage on Wednesday, while the U.S. dollar index gained 1% for the day. Sterling fell to 15-month low of $1.5539 GBP on Wednesday while the Australian dollar hit a 4 1/2-year low of $0.8107.
Oil prices were steadier after some wild swings this week. U.S. crude was quoted 25 cents lower at $56.23 having bounced as far as $58.98 on Wednesday. Brent dipped just 5 cents to $61.13, but had been as high as $68.71 at one stage on Wednesday
Within the equity space, a government commissioned report said on Wednesday that shares in Britain’s Royal Mail postal service should have been sold at a higher price when the firm was privatised last year, but the lost revenue was lower than previous estimates. The stock was up 0.5% in early trade at 396p per share.
Asian share markets rallied on Thursday after U.S. stocks enjoyed their strongest session this year when the Federal Reserve sounded upbeat on the economy and promised to be patient in removing policy stimulus. The S&P 500 scored its best day since October 2013 on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve gave an upbeat assessment of the economy and said it would take a patient approach toward lifting interest rates. The Dow closed 288 points higher at 17,356, the S&P500 rose 40 points to close at 2,012.
The rise in yields was enough to revive U.S. Dollar bulls after a few days of caution and the currency climbed to 118.50 Yen from a low of 116.29 on Wednesday. The Euro retreated to $1.2340, after being as high as $1.2515 at one stage on Wednesday, while the U.S. dollar index gained 1% for the day. Sterling fell to 15-month low of $1.5539 GBP on Wednesday while the Australian dollar hit a 4 1/2-year low of $0.8107.
Oil prices were steadier after some wild swings this week. U.S. crude was quoted 25 cents lower at $56.23 having bounced as far as $58.98 on Wednesday. Brent dipped just 5 cents to $61.13, but had been as high as $68.71 at one stage on Wednesday
Within the equity space, a government commissioned report said on Wednesday that shares in Britain’s Royal Mail postal service should have been sold at a higher price when the firm was privatised last year, but the lost revenue was lower than previous estimates. The stock was up 0.5% in early trade at 396p per share.
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