Global Markets: All Exchanges Continue to Rise

On European stock exchanges, stock prices rose on Friday morning for the fourth consecutive day, indicating significant weekly gains. The STOXX 600 index of leading European stocks was up 0.2 percent at 9:30 AM, on track for a weekly gain of about 2.5 percent. Meanwhile, the London FTSE index strengthened by 0.17 percent to 8,420 points, the Frankfurt DAX rose by 0.42 percent to 22,156 points, and the Paris CAC increased by 0.76 percent to 7,560 points.

All markets are on the rise, primarily due to investors’ hopes for a reduction in trade tensions between the US and China. Although there is still nothing concrete on this matter, investors believe that an agreement will be reached sooner or later. Beijing called on Washington yesterday to lift tariffs on Chinese imports, after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent indicated the White House was ready to ease trade tensions. Technology sector stocks saw the largest increase yesterday, averaging 3.5 percent.

The easing of rhetoric regarding tariffs is one of the reasons for the rise in chip manufacturers’ stock prices, as this sector is at the center of the trade conflict between the US and China, says Paul Nolte, a strategist at Murphy & Sylvest.

Therefore, he says, any easing of tariff rhetoric between the two countries stimulates the entire technology sector.

– However, there are still many questions regarding tariffs that we do not have answers to. Thus, many of us are essentially just shooting arrows into the dark, says Nolte.

Wall Street and Asian Markets Also on the Rise

On Wall Street, stock prices surged on Thursday for the third consecutive day, primarily in the technology sector. The Dow Jones index rose by 1.23 percent to 40,093 points, while the S&P 500 jumped by 2.03 percent to 5,484 points, and the Nasdaq index increased by 2.74 percent to 17,166 points.

Investors are also focused on quarterly business results from companies. So far, 157 companies in the S&P 500 index have reported, with 74 percent exceeding earnings expectations. Analysts now estimate that company earnings in the first quarter have increased by about 9 percent, while at the beginning of April, they expected growth of about 8 percent.

The MSCI index of Asian markets was up about 1 percent around 7:00 AM and is on track for gains for the second consecutive week. This morning, the Japanese Nikkei index rose by 1.9 percent, while stock prices in Shanghai, South Korea, and Hong Kong increased between 0.1 and 1.3 percent.

Dollar Slightly Strengthened, Oil Prices Increased

In the currency markets, the value of the dollar against a basket of currencies has slightly increased. The dollar index, which shows the value of the US dollar against the other six major world currencies, is around 99.78 points this morning, compared to 99.70 points at the same time yesterday. The exchange rate of the US dollar against the Japanese yen rose from yesterday’s 142.80 to 143.70 yen.

The US currency also strengthened against the euro, with the price of the euro slipping to 1.1330 dollars, down from 1.1335 dollars at the same time yesterday. Oil prices, on the other hand, have risen. The price of a barrel in the London market increased by 0.65 percent to 66.95 dollars, while in the US market, a barrel rose by 0.72 percent to 63.25 dollars.