(ABM FN-Dow Jones) The US stock markets have entered the Christmas weekend in a festive mood. The S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent on Thursday, ending at an all-time high of 4,725.79 points. The Dow Jones index gained 0.6 percent at 35,950.56 points and the Nasdaq ended 0.9 percent in the plus at 15,653.37 points.
On a weekly basis, the three major indices rose about 2 to 3 percent in this shortened trading week.
Investors took advantage of positive macro data and encouraging news about the omikron variant of the coronavirus. New research data suggests that people infected with the omikron variant have a significantly lower risk of hospitalization than those who contracted previous variants of the virus.
Concerns about rising inflation and its impact on economic growth will remain a risk factor for the new year.
On Thursday, it was announced that core PCE inflation, the Fed’s main inflation metric, came in at 4.7 percent in November, down from 4.2 percent in October and above the expected 4.5 percent.
Inflation will also remain a concern in early 2022, thinks Spartan’s Peter Cardillo. “Inflation will moderate in the second quarter of 2022,” said the market expert. Cardillo also expects the Fed to hold its course as the US labor market continues to recover.
On a macroeconomic level, it was also announced that American personal incomes rose 0.4 percent in November and spending rose 0.6 percent. The number of first-time jobless claims in the US remained stable last week at 205,000 applications.
New durable goods orders in the US rose 2.5 percent month-on-month in November. New home sales in the US rose 12.4 percent month-on-month in November, while falling 14 percent year-on-year.
Consumer confidence as measured by the University of Michigan stood at 70.6 in December, up from 67.4 in November.
The euro/dollar traded at 1.1335 on Thursday evening. The oil price continued to rise. At a settlement of $73.79, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate became 1.4 percent more expensive. Like Wall Street, the oil market will be closed on Friday.
Reports that the disease course of the omikron variant of the coronavirus may be milder than that of previous mutations was also received positively by the oil markets. This reduces the chance that large countries will have to go back into lockdown, which would be unfavorable for oil demand.
Company news
The US Food and Drug Administration has conditionally approved the corona pill from Merck and its collaboration partner Ridgeback. This was announced on Thursday.
The pill may only be used as a treatment against the coronavirus “when alternative Covid-19 treatments approved by the FDA are not accessible or clinically appropriate.” Merck’s corona pill, molnupiravir, can only be administered to adults who have tested positive for the virus and are at high risk of becoming seriously ill.
On Wednesday, Pfizer’s corona pill, paxlovid, was given the green light to prescribe to teens and adults at high risk of serious disease, but the FDA has not imposed further restrictions. Merck fell slightly. Pfizer lost about one percent.
Citigroup rose more than one percent. The bank sells its consumer bank in the Philippines to a local party. The market is interpreting the sale as a signal that the bank is pursuing its strategy of phasing out most of its retail operations in Asia.
The Federal Aviation Administration has proposed solutions to prevent the hoods of certain Boeing 777 aircraft from falling apart, as happened in a series of incidents earlier this year. Boeing ended up more than one percent higher.
Griddle producer Blackstone Product goes public via a SPAC. The company is valued at $780 million.
Bron: ABM Financial News
From Beursplein 5, the editors of ABM Financial News keep a close eye on developments on the stock exchanges, and the Amsterdam stock exchange in particular. The information in this column is not intended as professional investment advice or as a recommendation to make certain investments.
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