The resolution of the United States debt ceiling, market-friendly job data and bets that the US Federal Reserve will pause its rate hikes underpinned a late-week rally on Wall Street.
An impressive 701 points, or 2.1 per cent, surge by the Dow Jones Industrial Index saw the marquee Wall Street blue-chip index clamber back into the black for the year. At its Friday close at 33,762.76 points, the index was up more than 2 per cent for the week and 1.9 per cent up year-to-date.
Meanwhile, the broader S&P 500 index tried to break free from the jaws of the bear to hit its highest close since August 2022 at 4,282.37 points, marking a 1.5 per cent gain for the week. The tech-heavy Nasdaq hit a 13-month high as it gained 2 per cent for the week to close out at 13,240.77 points as an artificial intelligence frenzy continued to drive up the likes of Nvidia, Alphabet, Apple and Google.
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index closed 1.3 per cent lower for the week at 3,166.30 points as outflows from banks and other blue chips such as Singtel continued. Activity seems to be shifting to situational second-liners, especially stocks of companies which have started paying out dividends.
Also weighing down sentiment across Asian markets is the fact that China's economic recovery appears spotty at best.
After three years of zero-Covid, policymakers and the private sector are still struggling to form a coordinated, cohesive and cogent policy to pull the economy out of a funk, say economists. Not helping is the fact that the country faces a myriad of trade and market restrictions imposed by the West.
That said, the biggest market news for the week was legislation to suspend the US debt ceiling, which was passed by the US Congress on Friday, ending a drama that threatened a global financial crisis.
This story is from the June 05, 2023 edition of The Straits Times.
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This story is from the June 05, 2023 edition of The Straits Times.
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