Wall St steady despite global sell-off, Dow Jones adds 64 points
NEW YORK, New York — While stocks around the world dived Tuesday, U.S. markets steadied despite U.S. Federal Reserve Chief Jerome Powell warning that interest rates will likely have to stay higher for longer, due to an uptick in inflation. "More recent data shows solid growth and continued strength in the labor market, but also a lack of further progress so far this year on returning to our 2 percent inflation goal," he said. While the S&P 500 and NASDAQ ended the day in negative territory, the Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend with a modest increase. Here are the closing numbers for key indexes: S&P 500: The Standard and Poor’s 500 index closed at 5,051.41, marking a slight decline of 10.41 points or 0.21 percent. Dow Jones Industrial Average: The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) managed to edge slightly higher, closing at 37,798.97. This represents a gain of 63.86 points or 0.17 percent. NASDAQ Composite: The NASDAQ Composite index closed at 15,865.25, down 19.77 points or 0.12 percent. Market analysts attribute the mixed performance to a variety of factors, including ongoing concerns about inflation, interest rate hikes, and geopolitical tensions. Additionally, corporate earnings reports continue to influence investor sentiment as companies navigate the economic recovery and supply chain disruptions. Trading volumes varied across the indices, with billions of dollars exchanged: Global Foreign Exchange Market Sees Mixed Movement on Tuesday In the dynamic world of foreign exchange markets, Tuesday witnessed a mixed bag of movements among major currency pairs despite the central bank chief’s remarks which were positive for the greenback. Here are the latest quotes: EUR/USD: The euro inched down 0.2 percent to 1.0621, a loss of 0.02 percent. USD/JPY: The U.S. dollar gained ground against the Japanese yen, with the exchange rate standing at 154.64 yen, representing a loss of 0.25 percent or 0.38 yen. USD/CAD: The Canadian dollar fell to 1.3817. This reflects a modest decline of 0.22 percent. GBP/USD: The British pound experienced a slight decline against the U.S. dollar, with the exchange rate at 1.2432 dollars. This indicates a decrease of 0.11 percent. USD/CHF: The dollar strengthened against the Swiss franc, reaching 0.9128 francs. This represents a modest increase of 0.14 percent. AUD/USD: The Australian dollar weakened against the greenback, with the exchange rate at 0.6407. This reflects a decline of 0.54 percent. NZD/USD: Similarly, the New Zealand dollar saw a decline against the dollar, with the exchange rate at 0.5884. This indicates a loss of 0.33 percent. Stock markets across the globe record major trading losses On Tuesday, major stock indices around the world faced significant declines, reflecting growing concerns over geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty. Here are the closing numbers for the key indices: CANADA S&P/TSX Composite index: In Canada, the S&P/TSX Composite index closed at 21,642.87, experiencing a decline of 97.33 points or 0.45 percent. Trading volume on the S&P/TSX Composite amounted to approximately 228.094 million shares. UNITED KINGDOM FTSE 100: The London Stock Exchange’s FTSE 100 index closed at 7,820.36, marking a decrease of 145.17 points or 1.82 percent. EUROPE DAX PERFORMANCE-INDEX: In Germany, the DAX index experienced a decline, closing at 17,766.23, down 260.35 points or 1.44 percent. CAC 40: France’s CAC 40 index finished at 7,932.61, down 112.50 points or 1.40 percent. ESTX 50 PR.EUR: The Eurozone’s ESTX 50 PR.EUR index closed at 4,916.99 Tuesday, down 67.49 points or 1.35 percent. Euronext 100 Index: The Euronext 100 Index ended at 1,501.87, down 19.60 points or 1.29 percent. BEL 20: Belgium’s BEL 20 index closed at 3,796.92, down 56.82 points or 1.47 percent. ASIA Nikkei 225: In Tokyo, Japan, the Nikkei 225 index fell to 38,471.20, experiencing a drop of 761.60 points or 1.94 percent. HANG SENG INDEX: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index concluded at 16,248.97 Tuesday, down 351.49 points or 2.12 percent. SSE Composite Index: In China’s, the SSE Composite Index closed at 3,007.07, experiencing a decline of 50.31 points or 1.65 percent. Shenzhen Index: The Shenzhen Index in China finished at 9,155.07, down 214.63 points or 2.29 percent. STI Index: Singapore’s STI Index closed at 3,144.76, down 38.85 points or 1.22 percent. S&P BSE SENSEX: In India, the S&P BSE SENSEX ended at 72,943.68 Tuesday, down 456.10 points or 0.62 percent. NIFTY 50: India’s NIFTY 50 index meantime closed at 22,147.90, down 124.60 points or 0.56 percent. FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI: In Malaysia, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI finished at 1,535.00, down 7.53 points or 0.49 percent. KOSPI Composite Index: South Korea’s KOSPI Composite Index closed at 2,609.63, down 60.80 points or 2.28 percent. TSEC weighted index: In Taiwan on Tuesday, the TSEC weighted index consluded at 19,901.96, down 547.81 points or 2.68 percent. OCEANIA S&P/ASX 200: Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index closed at 7,612.50, down 140.00 points or 1.81 percent. ALL ORDINARIES: The Australian ALL ORDINARIES index meanwhile finished at 7,862.30, down 147.10 points or 1.84 percent. S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS: New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS closed at 11,804.84, down 111.94 points or 0.94 percent. AFRICA Top 40 USD Net TRI Index: In South Africa Tuesday, the Top 40 USD Net TRI Index ended at 3,778.29, down 82.73 points or 2.14 percent. MIDDLE EAST TA-125: Israel’s TA-125 index closed at 1,932.28, down 6.39 points or 0.33 percent. EGX 30 Price Return Index: In Egypt, the EGX 30 Price Return Index concluded at 29,400.80, down 215.70 points or 0.73 percent. The global market downturn reflects a growing sense of unease among investors, with geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty weighing heavily on sentiment. Market analysts suggest that investors are closely monitoring developments and assessing the potential impact on global economic stability.