New York (AFP) – Global stock markets rose on Friday following a solid US jobs report as investors greeted positive signs on the US-China trade war. Data showed that US hiring slowed much less than expected last month, with the world’s largest economy adding 177,000 jobs. European equities and US stocks both jumped following the release of the data. The broad-based S&P 500 finished at 5,686.67, up 1.4 percent for the day and 2.9 percent for the week.
“The April jobs report may reassure investors that the labor market is holding up, giving them more confidence that the economy can hold up too,” said Bret Kenwell, analyst at trading platform eToro. Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth Management described Friday’s job report as corroborating most of the data earlier in a week jammed with key economic indicators. Despite a disappointing GDP report, US consumption data was solid while inflation data was benign. “The news this week was on the bullish side when you add it all up,” Cahill said.
Meanwhile, China’s commerce ministry on Friday said it was evaluating a US offer for negotiations on tariffs, but insisted Washington must be ready to scrap levies that have roiled global markets and supply chains. President Donald Trump’s levies reached 145 percent on many Chinese products in April, while Beijing has responded with fresh 125-percent duties on imports from the United States. Trump has repeatedly claimed that China has reached out for talks on the tariffs, and this week said he believed there was a “very good chance we’re going to make a deal”.
Deutsche Bank managing director Jim Reid said the Chinese statement “is outweighing concerns about the effect of tariffs, which were initially triggered by disappointing earnings from Apple and Amazon.” US tech giants Apple and Amazon both reported disappointing outlooks, as tariffs knock business confidence, after markets closed on Thursday.
In Europe, Paris and Frankfurt rose over two percent as markets brushed off official data showing eurozone inflation remained unchanged at slightly above the European Central Bank’s two-percent target. London also gained ground, with mining and commodity stocks – sensitive to Chinese demand – performing particularly well amid optimism for potential China-US talks, according to analysts.
In Asia on Friday, Hong Kong was up more than 1.7 percent at the close, while Tokyo rose one percent. Japan’s envoy for US tariff talks said in Washington on Thursday that a second round of negotiations between the two countries had been “frank and constructive.” The Bank of Japan warned earlier that tariffs were fuelling global economic uncertainty and lowered its growth forecasts while keeping its key interest rate steady.
– Key figures at around 2040 GMT –
New York – Dow: UP 1.4 percent at 41,317.43 (close)
New York – S&P 500: UP 1.5 percent at 5,686.67 (close)
New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 1.5 percent at 17,977.73 (close)
London – FTSE 100: UP 1.2 percent at 8,596.35 (close)
Paris – CAC 40: UP 2.3 percent at 7,770.48 (close)
Frankfurt – DAX: UP 2.6 percent at 23,086.65 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.0 percent at 36,830.69 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.7 percent at 22,504.68 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: closed for holiday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1299 from $1.1290 on Thursday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3268 from $1.3278
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 144.97 yen from 145.39 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 85.14 pence from 85.04 pence
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.6 percent at $58.29 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.4 percent at $61.29 per barrel
burs-jmb/dw
© 2024 AFP
