U.S Stock Market
DJIA S & P 500 NASDAQ
15060 1628.75 2961.50
+0.51% +0.48% +0.48%
outlook for the economy. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.3% to end at a record high, one day after
the index closed above 15,000 for the first time. The S&P 500 gained 0.4% to also end at another all time
peak. The Nasdaq added 0.5%. Market participants have been encouraged by better than expected corporate earnings for the first quarter, although revenue growth has been weak. Solid German industrial out data and hopes for more better than expected earnings in coming sessions sent stock prices to new fresh highs. There were no major U.S economic reports yesterday, although data on Chinese exports and German industrial output were encouraging. Asian markets also finished the day with gains. The Nikkei added 0.7%, the Hang Seng increased 0.8% and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.5%. European markets also closed higher, with the Euronext 100 index displaying some solid support
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Blue chips rose 14 points, or 0.1%, to 15071 in. The blue chips which mark their first ever close above
15000 on Tuesday, dipped as low as 34 points before changing course. The Dow has risen more than 800
points since initially setting a fresh record high on March 5. With the blue chip average closing yesterday
above 15000 for the first time ever, we looked at some of the biggest point contributors to the Dow’s hyper
run over the past two months. Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included UnitedHealth
Group, up 3.31%, Hewlett-Packard, up 2.73%, and Alcoa, up 2.55% and worst performers included
McDonald's, down 1.32%, Pfizer, down 1.07%, and Microsoft, down 0.93%.
NASDAQ 100
The Technology Heavy Nasdaq climbed 14 points, or 0.4%, to 3410. Technology stocks recovered from a
shaky start yesterday, getting a lift from shares of Facebook, Google, Apple and chip companies.
Facebook rose 1% to close at $27.12, while Google added 2% to close at $873.63 and Apple Inc.
traded up 1.1% to close at $463.84. Semiconductor shares also posted strong gains, with Advanced Micro
Devices up 8% to close at $3.83 and Nvidia Corp. ahead by 1.8% to close at $13.90. Groupon Inc. also saw its stock jump 3.7% to close at $5.59 ahead of the online
daily deals site’s quarterly report. Electronic Arts saw it shares rally 17% to close at $21.56 after the videogame publisher put out a better than expected full year outlook.
Crude Oil
Crude Oil futures rose yesterday after German industrial output numbers beat expectations, though
supply data out of the U.S capped the growth sensitive commodity's gains. The U.S Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that U.S crude oil inventories rose by 230,000 barrels in the week
ending May 3, well below market expectations for an increase of 1.9 million barrels. Total U.S crude oil
inventories stood at 395.5 million barrels as of last week, the highest level since 1982.
Precious and Base Metals
Bullion shot up yesterday after German industrial output data came in much stronger than expected and
sent investors chasing the Single Currency and ditching the Greenback, often a recipe for firming Gold prices.
Expectations for rising physical demand in Asia pushed up prices as well. Bullion prices have been range
bound this month, torn between a pick-up in physical demand after prices plunged to a more than 2 year
low in mid April and a lack of interest from investors who are shifting their money into equities as Wall
Street gains. SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold backed ETF, said its holdings fell 0.60% to 1,051.47 tonnes yesterday from 1057.79 tonnes on Tuesday. The physical market was mixed in Asia, with dealers in Singapore noting a slowdown in buying interest and those in Hong Kong reporting a shortage in the supply of gold bars that kept premiums at multi month highs. Silver was little changed as investors remained hesitant to return to the market amid a bearish technical outlook. Silver prices were supported
following the release of positive trade data out of China. Copper futures traded just below the previous
session’s three week high yesterday, as sentiment on the industrial metal was boosted following the release
of positive trade data out of China.
Traditional Agricultural
Wheat futures were mixed. Chicago was down on fund selling and spillover from corn. Kansas City and
Minneapolis were higher on concerns about crop conditions in the Southern Plains and planting delays
in the Northern Plains. In addition to the supply and demand update, USDA’s new winter wheat production
estimates are due on Friday. Soybeans were mixed on old crop/new crop spread trade. The nearby supply
remains tight and the trade expects old crop stocks to be unchanged to a little bit smaller than last month.
Corn was lower on technical and fund selling. There are more planting delays in the near term but longer
term forecasts look better for most of the Cornbelt. Friday, old crop ending stocks should be just about
unchanged, while new crop should be significantly larger with the average guess at nearly 2 billion bushels
The U.S Dollar weakened against most currencies yesterday after German industrial output data blew past expectations a day after factory orders did likewise in Europe's largest economy and fueled
demand for risk-sensitive assets. Germany's industrial output, which includes manufacturing, mining, electricity and gas concerns, shot up 1.2% in March, the largest increase in a year and defying expectations
for a 0.1% decline. February’s figure was revised up 0.6% from 0.5%.The numbers strengthen hopes that the German economy, Europe's largest, may post better than expected growth rates for the first
quarter. During the October-December period of 2012, Germany's economy contracted by 0.5%. German factory orders climbed 2.2% in March, defying expectations for a 0.5% decline. The string of good
news out of Germany put to rest recent concerns that the European Central Bank may trim benchmark borrowing costs. Rising stock prices on Wall Street enticed investors out of the U.S Dollar as well. The
Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the U.S Dollar versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.46% at 81.98.
Disclaimer The analysis we provide is based on the average estimate of price movements in one day. Does not guarantee what we deliver is actually a proper and correct. Everything that happens in the decisions you make on your trading transaction is to be Your responsibilities.
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