On Wall Street, the S&P 500 index rose at the highest rate in the last seven weeks, thanks to data on employment growth in the American private sector and consumer confidence.
The Dow Jones index strengthened by 136 points, or 1.04 percent, to 13,232 points, while the S&P 500 jumped 1.09 percent, to 1,427 points, marking its largest daily increase since mid-September. The Nasdaq index, on the other hand, rose by 1.44 percent, to 3,020 points.
Investors were particularly encouraged by the data showing that 158,000 new jobs were created in the American private sector in October, the highest in the last eight months and more than expected.
These ADP data, from the largest American employment agency, fueled investor hopes that the labor market is recovering and that the government employment data, to be released on Friday, will be better than estimated.
– Today’s data shows that ‘bulls’ have good cards in hand and have finally given investors a stronger incentive to buy. However, tomorrow will show who has the trump cards and who will take everything off the table – says Alan Lancz, president of Alan B. Lancz & Associates.
In a Reuters survey, analysts expect that in October the number of employed increased by 125,000, about 10,000 more than in September, but also that the unemployment rate slightly increased to 7.9 percent, after falling by 0.3 percentage points in September.
Investors were also cheered by the Conference Board data on the rise of the consumer confidence index in October to the highest level in four years.
It was expected that trading volume would be significantly above average, after Wall Street was closed for two days due to Hurricane Sandy. However, yesterday was, like Wednesday, average.
Among the biggest gainers was the mining sector. The S&P index of that sector jumped 2 percent as commodity prices rose, following data indicating a stabilization of economic activity in China, the world’s largest consumer of commodities.
The S&P index of the technology sector also rose significantly, by 1.8 percent, which had been under strong pressure in recent weeks due to weaker-than-expected quarterly business results from technology companies.
And the business reports from companies continue to present a mixed picture. Pfizer reported lower revenues than expected in the last quarter, causing the stock price of the largest American pharmaceutical company to fall by 1.3 percent.
The stock of Exxon Mobil, on the other hand, rose by 0.5 percent as the oil giant reported quarterly earnings in line with expectations, although lower compared to the same quarter last year.
The stock price of Starbucks surged even more, by over 6 percent, after the coffee chain reported higher profits in the third quarter than expected and raised estimates for future business results.
European stock prices also rose yesterday. The London FTSE index strengthened by 1.37 percent, to 5,861 points, while the Frankfurt DAX rose by 1.03 percent, to 7,335 points, and the Paris CAC by 1.35 percent, to 3,475 points.
