New York (AFP) – Global stock markets rose Monday, digesting more political upheaval in France and Japan as the tech-rich Nasdaq index finished at an all-time high. Oil prices advanced as traders bet a plan by OPEC + to boost output would result in less additional production than feared. The price of gold hit a new record high above $3,600 an ounce as the precious metal continues to benefit from its status as a safe haven investment. Meanwhile, US stocks pushed higher following positive sessions in Europe and Asia.
“Political uncertainty is making waves on markets at the start of the week, but sentiment remains largely upbeat,” noted Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers. In France, President Emmanuel Macron was poised to accept the resignation of Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Tuesday after his government was ejected in a confidence vote. Bayrou blindsided even his allies by calling a vote to end a months-long standoff over his austerity budget, which foresees almost 44 billion euros ($52 billion) of cost savings to reduce France’s debt pile. Still, major bourses in Europe climbed, as did the euro.
Tokyo’s Nikkei stocks index closed up 1.5 percent, with Japanese exporters benefiting from a slide in the yen’s value. Japanese bond yields also climbed after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday he would step down after less than a year in power — during which he lost his majority in both houses of parliament — heralding uncertainty for the world’s fourth-largest economy. The European Central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady again this week with inflation under control and US tariff tensions easing. Markets are also eyeing US inflation data later this week amid expectations of rate relief from the Federal Reserve.
Expectations that the Fed would soon cut rates grew after Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s August 23 address at the central bank’s Jackson Hole gathering signaled a pivot. Powell had previously argued the Fed could keep rates unchanged in light of inflation that has lingered above the Fed’s long-term target level while the US economy chugged along. But the weakening of the jobs market has led more policymakers to argue that rates need to be cut so as to forestall further deterioration. “I think the Fed has locked itself into cutting rates in September,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research. The only outlying question based on future economic reports, he said, is “will they cut once, twice or three times this year?”
– Key figures at around 2040 GMT –
New York – Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 45,514.95 (close)
New York – S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 6,495.15 (close)
New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 21,798.70 (close)
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,221.44 (close)
Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 7,734.84 (close)
Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.9 percent at 23,807.13 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.5 percent at 43,643.81 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.9 percent at 25,633.91 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,826.84 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1760 from $1.1717 on Friday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3549 from $1.3509
Dollar/yen: FLAT at 147.43 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.80 pence from 86.73 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.8 percent at $66.02 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 percent at $62.26 per barrel
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© 2024 AFP
