2023-04-28
On Thursday, the stock market closed positively for all lists. The DOW Jones was up 1.57% to 33,826.16, the S&P 500 was up 1.96% to 4,135.35, and the NASDAQ 100 was up 2.43% 12,142.24.
The stock market rallied, although first-quarter GDP data was not as strong as expected. This may make some investors think the Federal Reserve will soon raise interest rates. The Federal Reserve will make a final decision on the matter next week. GDP increased by just 1.1%, less than the 2% expected. In addition, inflation was higher than expected at 4% versus 3.7% expected.
The stock market saw a surge in share prices on Thursday, particularly in the technology sector. Meta Platforms delivered better-than-expected quarterly revenue and a positive outlook, which led to a 13.9% increase in share price. This news prompted analysts to raise their price targets. Other companies in the technology sector, such as Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Apple, have also seen increases in share prices.
Gold prices fell 0.2% to $1,955 an ounce on Friday morning, while US WTI oil rose 0.6% to $75.23 a barrel. Equity futures were down slightly, losing about 0.1%.
First Republic Bank (FRC) gained nearly 9%, despite a decline in its share prices lately. This is due to efforts by California banks and regulators to avoid a bank seizure. Sadly, this has not been good news for investors who hold FRC shares.
There have been some updates on the economy. The number of people filing for unemployment benefits fell to 230,000 last week, better than the expected increase of 249,000. However, the first quarter GDP growth rate was 1.1%, lower than forecasts.
The forecast annualized growth rate was 2%, and the prior quarter had seen growth of 2.6%. Dow Jones futures rose this morning following an unexpected drop in jobless claims and first-quarter GDP information released by the Labor Department.
The 10-year US Treasury yield rose to 3.46% on Thursday, indicating significant weekly losses. However, it is still better than the lows seen in early April.
US oil prices rallied slightly on Thursday morning, following a significant drop on Wednesday. West Texas Intermediate futures remain below $75 a barrel, the average price for the year, and below the peak of $83 a barrel recorded on April 12.
Shares of Meta rallied 12% Thursday morning on the back of strong first-quarter performance, which beat Wall Street expectations. In addition, the firm provided upbeat sales guidance, further boosting investor confidence.
Merck, a major player in the pharmaceutical industry, posted a 1.4% increase in its share price following a decline in first-quarter earnings. Meanwhile, Roku beat expectations for Q1 by earning more viewers than expected, resulting in a 1% increase in its stock.
On Friday, April 28, Asian stock markets were all in positive territory. This result was attributed to the strong performance of significant technology stocks on Wall Street and reported that the US economy did not grow as much as expected in the first quarter.
This development could potentially affect the Federal Reserve’s rate hike plan. In the morning, the Nikkei rose 0.8%, Hong Kong 0.9%, and Shanghai 0.7%. Asian stock markets were cautious earlier in the day due to negative sentiment towards the banking sector and lackluster macro data out of China.
In the first quarter of 2023, profits of China’s industrial sector fell by 21.4% to 1,516.74 billion yuan. This decline can be attributed to the slow recovery in manufacturing activities after the prolonged closure of major Chinese cities due to the Covid pandemic. The previous period also saw a sharp decline of 22.9%, while 2022 saw a 4% drop in profits. Both state-owned enterprises and the private sector have experienced declining profits.