U.S markets rallied on Friday and ended the week with strong gains. Sentiment was boosted by Jobless Claims data released on Thursday which showed that Initial Jobless Claims came out at 281K when predicted to be 285K and Continuing Jobless Claims came out at 2,304K when expected to be 2,356K. The data reduced fears that the economy is slowing down and boosted speculation that recent weak data was temporary. On Friday, FOMC Member Lacker Spoke in Sarasota. His comments were taken as relatively hawkish as he argued that the Central bank should still consider changing rates in June. He also stated that rates could be reversed back to zero at a later date and that recent weak economic indicators could be taken as transitory. At session close the S&P 500 was 0.5% higher at 2,102.05 and 1.7% higher for the weak. The Dow Jones was 0.6% higher at 18,057.65 and posted a weekly gain of 1.7%.
Asian markets were mixed today. The Nikkei lost 0.01% despite the fact that the Dollar moved higher against the Yen. The dollar was trading around 120.6 at session close compared to 120.2 at the open. Local elections were held in Japan but did not appear to have any great effect on markets. Traders also appeared to shrug off better than expected Japanese data. The biggest mover in the index was Nippon Electric Glass Co which added 17.7%. On the down side, Kikkoman Corp lost 3.59%, Tokyo Gas Co lost 3.52% and MEIJI Holdings Co lost 3.34%. The Hang Seng added 2.73% despite the fact that Trade balance data missed expectations. The Trade Balance came out with a surplus of just 3.08billion when predicted to be 45.35B. Imports and exports also missed expectations. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing added 19.44%, Kunlun Energy Co added 11.45% and Bank of China LTD added 8.57%.
European markets are mixed today. According to MarketWatch, mining shares led losses after analysts at Citigroup reduced the iron ore sector from ‘bullish’ to ‘neutral’. The FTSE 100 is down 0.28% and is being led by BHP Billiton which is down 2.7%, Tesco PLC which is down 2.49% and Antofagasta PLC which is down 2.09%. The DAX is down 0.09% as Volkswagen loses 1.33%, Continental loses 0.94% and Deutsche Post is down 0.79%. The CAC 40 is 0.19%.
April 13, 2015 – Indices News
U.S markets rallied on Friday and ended the week with strong gains. Sentiment was boosted by Jobless Claims data released on Thursday which showed that Initial Jobless Claims came out at 281K when predicted to be 285K and Continuing Jobless Claims came out at 2,304K when expected to be 2,356K. The data reduced fears that the economy is slowing down and boosted speculation that recent weak data was temporary. On Friday, FOMC Member Lacker Spoke in Sarasota. His comments were taken as relatively hawkish as he argued that the Central bank should still consider changing rates in June. He also stated that rates could be reversed back to zero at a later date and that recent weak economic indicators could be taken as transitory. At session close the S&P 500 was 0.5% higher at 2,102.05 and 1.7% higher for the weak. The Dow Jones was 0.6% higher at 18,057.65 and posted a weekly gain of 1.7%.
Asian markets were mixed today. The Nikkei lost 0.01% despite the fact that the Dollar moved higher against the Yen. The dollar was trading around 120.6 at session close compared to 120.2 at the open. Local elections were held in Japan but did not appear to have any great effect on markets. Traders also appeared to shrug off better than expected Japanese data. The biggest mover in the index was Nippon Electric Glass Co which added 17.7%. On the down side, Kikkoman Corp lost 3.59%, Tokyo Gas Co lost 3.52% and MEIJI Holdings Co lost 3.34%. The Hang Seng added 2.73% despite the fact that Trade balance data missed expectations. The Trade Balance came out with a surplus of just 3.08billion when predicted to be 45.35B. Imports and exports also missed expectations. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing added 19.44%, Kunlun Energy Co added 11.45% and Bank of China LTD added 8.57%.
European markets are mixed today. According to MarketWatch, mining shares led losses after analysts at Citigroup reduced the iron ore sector from ‘bullish’ to ‘neutral’. The FTSE 100 is down 0.28% and is being led by BHP Billiton which is down 2.7%, Tesco PLC which is down 2.49% and Antofagasta PLC which is down 2.09%. The DAX is down 0.09% as Volkswagen loses 1.33%, Continental loses 0.94% and Deutsche Post is down 0.79%. The CAC 40 is 0.19%.
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