US Markets
| Name | Week Close | Daily Change | Daily Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 39475.90 | -305.47 | -0.77% |
| S&P 500 | 5234.18 | -7.35 | -0.14% |
| Nasdaq | 16428.82 | 26.98 | 0.16% |
| VIX | 13.06 | 0.14 | 1.08% |
| Gold | 2167.50 | 7.50 | 0.35% |
| Oil | 80.73 | 0.10 | 0.12% |
US MARKET
Stocks closed with mixed results on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 marked their best weeks of the year, despite the Dow slipping 305 points or 0.77% and the S&P 500 edging down marginally by 0.14%. The Nasdaq, however, gained 0.16%, reaching new highs for the week along with the other major indexes.
Investor concerns about the Federal Reserve’s actions seemed to dissipate before the central bank’s policy announcement on Wednesday. Neither the Federal Reserve’s statements nor Chairman Jerome Powell’s press conference appeared hawkish, potentially signaling a rate cut in June if inflation remains stable.
Stocks rallied further as obstacles, such as the Justice Department’s lawsuit against Apple, were overcome. Apple’s shares rebounded slightly on Friday following a 4% drop on Thursday due to the lawsuit.
FedEx reported better-than-expected earnings, prompting a 7.4% rise in its shares. Nike’s shares fell 6.9% despite a slight revenue increase, with challenges anticipated for the first half of fiscal 2025.
Foot Locker gained 3.1% following an upgrade by Citi. Lululemon Athletica’s stock dropped 16% despite beating earnings expectations, as its guidance fell short. Tesla fell 1.2% due to reports of reduced production in China.
Nvidia rose 3.1% after an increase in its price target by UBS analysts. U.S.-listed shares of Baidu rose 0.5% on reports of talks with Apple regarding AI technology. Reddit fell 8.8% after a strong debut on Thursday.
Best Buy rose 1.5% following an upgrade by J.P. Morgan. Digital World Acquisition fell 14% after shareholders approved its merger with Truth Social
LOCAL MARKET
The local stock market closed slightly lower on Friday after a busy week for central banks, but still ended the week in positive territory, thanks to a rally on Thursday.
The S&P/ASX200 index finished down 11.4 points or 0.15% at 7,770.6, while the broader All Ordinaries dropped 18.3 points or 0.23% to 8,026.3.
For the week, the ASX200 rose 1.3%, bouncing back from a 2.3% decline the previous week, which marked its worst performance in over a year.
Major central banks, including the Reserve Bank, Federal Reserve, Bank of England, Bank of Japan, and others, held meetings during the week. The Swiss National Bank surprised observers by cutting interest rates, while Taiwan’s central bank unexpectedly raised them.
AMP chief economist Shane Oliver noted that while Taiwan’s move was unexpected, most major central banks are moving towards normalising interest rates, which typically involves rate cuts. Oliver suggested that Australia could see rate cuts starting as early as June, although there’s a risk they could be delayed until August or September.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ consumer price index report for February, scheduled for release on Wednesday, will provide further insights into the RBA’s potential actions regarding interest rates.
On Friday, six of the ASX’s 11 sectors ended lower, with energy being the biggest mover, dropping 1.3%. The mining sector also declined by 0.9%, despite a rebound in iron ore prices.
Among individual stocks, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare surged 7.7%, while Australian Unity Office Fund rose 10.3%.
The Australian dollar weakened, trading at 65.24 US cents, down from 66.29 US cents at Thursday’s close.
On other markets, the NZX 50 added 62.91 points or 0.53% to 11,978.62, and the Nikkei gained 72.77 points or 0.18% to close at 40,888.43