Hawkish Remarks By Fed Chairman Jerome Powell Sent US Stocks Lower, Fresh Corporate Profits Sent European Stocks Mostly Higher.
London, Thursday, 21 April 2022
US Markets Summary
Following hawkish remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, most indices in the US stock market closed lower on Thursday.
Powell indicated at an International Monetary Fund panel that a half-point rate hike will be on the table for the May meeting in order to bring inflation down to the 2% target.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 368.5 points, or 1.05 percent, to close at 34,792.
The S&P 500 index fell 64 points, or 1.44 percent, to 4,395.
The Nasdaq, which is heavily weighted in technology, fell 278.4 points, or 2.07%, to 13,174.
The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, jumped 12.9 percent to 22.94 at the close.
The dollar index increased by 0.18 percent to 100.6, while the 10-year US Treasury note rate fell by 0.15 percent to 2.892 percent.
Gold fell 0.10 percent to $1,953 and silver rose 2.08 percent to $24.7, putting precious metals on the decrease.
Crude oil prices rose more than 1% as investors evaluated the likelihood of a European Union ban on Russian oil and gas, while Libyan output cuts last week heightened concerns about a shortfall.
Brent crude, the global standard, was trading at $108.29, up 1.40 percent, while WTI, the US benchmark, was trading at $103.75, up 1.53 percent.
European Markets Summary
Investors digested fresh corporate profits as European stock markets closed mainly higher on Thursday.
The STOXX Europe 600 index increased 1.5 points, or 0.32 percent, to 461.6 points, representing about 90% of the market capitalisation of the European market in 17 nations.
The FTSE 100 in London settled at 7,629, while the DAX 30 in Germany gained 140.4 points, or 0.98 percent, to close at 14,502.
The CAC 40 index in France had the greatest day, rising 90.2 points, or 1.36 percent, to close at 6,715.
The IBEX 35 index in Spain rose 45 points, or 0.51 percent, to close at 8,815.
The FTSE MIB in Italy, on the other hand, fell 72.6 points, or 0.29 percent, to 24,805.
(Written and edited by: The Decision Maker)
