U.S. stock markets experienced a positive close on Thursday, August 15th, with the Nasdaq leading the gains. This surge was attributed to encouraging economic data, particularly strong consumer spending figures in July, which alleviated concerns about a potential recession in the U.S. economy.
According to the released data, U.S. retail sales climbed by 1% in July, contrasting with a revised 0.2% drop in June. This outperformed market expectations of a 0.3% increase. Furthermore, initial jobless claims in the U.S. dropped by 7,000 to 227,000 for the week ending August 10th, surpassing the anticipated 235,000. The NY Empire State Manufacturing Index also demonstrated improvement, rising to -4.7 in August, marking its highest level in six months.
The positive economic indicators translated into a strong performance across the major stock indices. Nine out of the eleven major S&P 500 sectors advanced, with consumer discretionary and information technology leading the charge. In contrast, real estate and utilities stocks closed lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 1.39%, closing at 40,563.06. The S&P 500 ended the day 1.61% higher at 5,543.22, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 2.34%, concluding the session at 17,594.50.
The positive sentiment extended to Asian markets on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 soared by 3.88%, closing at 38,127.50, driven by gains in the Power, Real Estate, and Insurance sectors. The yen’s weakness, fueled by expectations of the Bank of Japan’s cautious approach to rate hikes, prompted Japanese investors to significantly increase their purchases of overseas bonds. This trend also attracted foreign investors back to buying Japanese stocks and bonds, contributing to the yen’s stabilization.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also witnessed growth, rising by 1.34% to close at 7,971.10. This gain was led by strong performances in the Energy, Materials, and Metals & Mining sectors. India’s Nifty 50 gained 1.64%, ending the day at 24,540.55, while the Nifty 500 closed 1.67% higher at 23,051.95. In China, the Shanghai Composite inched up 0.07%, ending the session at 2,879.43, while the Shenzhen CSI gained 0.11%, closing at 3,345.63. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also ended the session higher, rising by 1.88% to 17,430.16.
European markets were mixed at 06:15 AM ET. The European STOXX 50 index rose by 0.64%, while Germany’s DAX climbed 0.70%. However, France’s CAC was down by 0.27%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 traded 0.44% lower.
In the commodities market at 06:15 AM ET, crude oil prices were down. WTI crude oil was trading 2.06% lower at $76.53/bbl, and Brent crude oil declined by 1.78% to $79.61/bbl. Natural gas prices rose by 0.68% to $2.212. Gold prices were up by 0.54% at $2,505.60, while silver dropped by 0.54% to $28.258. Copper prices also fell, sliding by 0.79% to $4.1182.
Looking ahead, U.S. futures at 06:15 AM ET were mixed. Dow futures were down by 0.02%, while S&P 500 futures slipped 0.07%. However, Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.04%. In the forex market at 06:15 AM ET, the U.S. Dollar Index fell by 0.16% to 102.81. USD/JPY was down by 0.51% at 148.50, and USD/AUD declined by 0.35% to 1.5056.
