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More new highs for US stocks

US equity markets forged ahead to new highs yet again, despite already hitting multiple all-time highs in the previous several sessions. The themes causing euphoria on markets remained the same as in the last days: hopes that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will soon begin lowering interest rates and an optimistic outlook for artificial intelligence-related stocks. The US Consumer Price Index, due later Thursday, will show whether the optimism about Fed rate cuts was justified. Likewise, the second-quarter earnings season, which starts with major US banks on Friday, will put AI-driven stock valuations to the test.

Date
Auteur
Shane Strowmatt, LGT
Temps de lecture
5 minutes

Wall Street green light
© Shutterstock

Both the broader S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 shot up, reaching new record highs on Wednesday. While that has been a common occurrence in recent session, in contrast to the previous days, the Dow Jones Industrial kept up the pace with the other indices, increasing 1.1% on Wednesday. The S&P 500 broke through the 5600-point mark for the first time and closed more than 1% higher. The Nasdaq-100 rose 1.1% with chipmakers leading the way. Nvidia gained 2.6%.

Nikkei 225 blows through 42,000 mark

In the Asia-Pacific region, the Nikkei 225 was likewise on a sustained record-breaking path. The index smashed through the 42,000 mark for the first time ever, trading 1.2% higher. Tech stocks were driving the rally. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was trading 0.9% higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was leading gains in the region, up 1.6%, while the mainland CSI 300 was up 0.9%.

Indefinite strike at Samsung

In South Korea, the Kospi was trading 0.6% higher, lagging behind other gains in the region and dragged down by heavyweight Samsung Electronics, whose shares were trading 0.9% lower on Thursday. On Wednesday, the company’s largest labour union, which includes about 30,000 Samsung workers, declared an indefinite strike. The move threatens to delay production schedules at the world’s largest maker of memory chips.

Corporate and macroeconomic calendars

Corporate news in focus: Second-quarter figures from Pepsi.

Economic data in focus: German Consumer Price Index, US Consumer Price Index, US weekly initial jobless claims.

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Publisher: LGT Bank (Switzerland) Ltd., Glärnischstrasse 36, CH-8027 Zurich
Editor: Alessandro Fezzi
Source: LGT Bank (Switzerland) Ltd.

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