New Records on Wall Street, Growth Followed by European and Asian Markets

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 index reached a record level on Thursday, as did Nasdaq, primarily due to the rise in stock prices of technology companies, while inflation data was in line with expectations. Dow Jones strengthened by 0.12 percent to 38,996 points, while S&P 500 rose by 0.52 percent to 5,096 points, and the Nasdaq index increased by 0.90 percent to 16,091 points.

The new record highs of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices are mainly attributed to the rise in stock prices of technology giants, such as chip manufacturers Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices.

Positive market influences also came from inflation data, which met expectations. In January, the personal consumption price index, including energy and food, rose by 0.3 percent month-on-month and 2.4 percent year-on-year. This somewhat solidified market estimates that the U.S. central bank could start lowering interest rates in June, while Fed officials indicate there is no reason to rush into a rate cut.

Thanks largely to the euphoria surrounding artificial intelligence development, stock indices rose for the fourth consecutive month in February. In the past month, the Dow Jones increased by 2.2 percent, while the S&P 500 jumped by 5.2 percent, and the Nasdaq index rose by 6.1 percent.

European investors await inflation data

As on the previous day on Wall Street, European stock indices rose on Friday morning, while investors await the inflation report for the eurozone, which could influence market direction.

The STOXX 600 index of leading European stocks was up 0.4 percent at 9:30 AM, but on track for its first loss after five weeks of growth. This morning, the London FTSE index strengthened by 0.59 percent to 7,675 points, while the Frankfurt DAX rose by 0.57 percent to 17,780 points, and the Paris CAC increased by 0.03 percent to 7,930 points.

Investors will focus today on Eurostat’s first estimate of inflation in the eurozone for February. If inflationary pressures continue to ease, it would strengthen speculation that the European Central Bank could soon start lowering interest rates.

Asian markets follow Wall Street’s growth

Asian stock prices also rose. The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks, excluding Japan, was up 0.2 percent at 9:30 AM. However, on a weekly basis, it is down 0.4 percent.

This morning, the Nikkei index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange jumped nearly 2 percent, while stock prices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Australia rose between 0.4 and 0.6 percent. In South Korea, there is no trading today due to a holiday.

The Japanese Nikkei index reached a new record level as investors hope that the local central bank will continue to pursue an extremely accommodative monetary policy, given that data released this morning showed that industrial activity sharply declined in February due to weak demand.

The growth of the Chinese economy is also not on solid ground, as indicated by the decline in the PMI index of industrial activity in February for the fifth consecutive month. As a result, Chinese stock indices are balancing on the edge of positive and negative territory. Despite the weakness of the economies, most Asian markets are following yesterday’s growth on Wall Street.