Wall Street opened in the green on Friday as traders analysed yesterday’s presidential debate between current US President Joe Biden and Republican candidate Donald Trump, while digesting the latest inflation figures.
Ten minutes after the trading floor opened, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, its main indicator, rose 0.50% to stand at 39,358 points; The selective S&P 500 rose 0.31%, to 5,500 units, and the technological Nasdaq advanced 0.18%, to 17,890 points.
On Thursday, Joe Biden’s weak performance in the debate with Donald Trump created panic among Democrats, with many wondering whether he will be replaced ahead of the upcoming elections in November.
Given Biden’s instability, many investors are now analyzing the possible repercussions that a new Donald Trump presidency would have on the stock market.
In early trading, Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, the former president’s social network, was up 3% after several weeks of sharp declines.
On the other hand, the market was also influenced today by the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index, which last May marked an increase of 2.6% year-on-year, one tenth less than the April figure. The Bureau of Economic Statistics (BEA) reported this Friday.
Core inflation, which excludes the more volatile food and energy prices, also rose 0.1% last month.
The PCE is one of the key indicators for the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy, and investors now value the possibility that the central bank will cut interest rates at its September meeting at 59.5%.
On the corporate front, Nike shares were down 18% on Friday morning after the company cut its outlook for this year.
The market bids farewell to the first half of 2024 at the close of trading on Friday, with the Nasdaq leading the gains and rising by around 19% thanks to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, while the S&P 500 rose by more than 15% and the Dow Jones advanced by only 4.4%.
By sector, energy (0.88%) and industrial (0.87%) led the gains, while the largest losses were for communication (-0.6%) and non-essential goods (-0. ,3 %).
Among the 30 values, the advances of UnitedHealth (2.79%) and Salesforce (2.35%) stood out, and in the red field Nike (-18%) and Travelers (-1.41%) stood out.
In other markets, Texas oil (WTI) opened this Friday with a rise of 0.23%, up to $81.93 per barrel, again influenced by the increase in tension between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite paramilitary group Hezbollah.
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2024-06-29 01:34:37