Wall Street punctured by PPI, Dow Jones slides points
NEW YORK, New York — An unexpected jump in the Producer Prices Index caused stocks to falter on Thursday, reviving inflation fears and the prospect of interest rates remaining higher for longer. The producer price index for final demand rose 0.6 percent in February twice the zie oif the January advance, the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had expectations for half that, at 0.3 percent. Not everyone was spook ed though. "If we take inflation as a whole, we’ve had relatively hot inflation readings the last two months now, yet the market has kind of powered higher," Tony Welch, chief investment officer of SignatureFD told Reuters Thursday. "Fed policy may not be as loose as the market wanted it to be this year, but the prospect of further tightening still remains a low probability." Here are the closing stock market quotes for the major indices: S&P 500 (^GSPC): The S&P 500 closed at 5,150.48, showing a decrease of 14.83 points or 0.29 percent. Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI): The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 38,905.66, down by 137.66 points or 0.35 percent. NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC): The NASDAQ Composite closed at 16,128.53, marking a decrease of 49.24 points or 0.30 percent. U.S. dollar shoots higher Thursday on foreign exchange markets following PPI The U.S. dollar rose sharply Thursday following the release of the Producer Prices Index which saw a 0.6 percent increase in February, as against 0.3 percent forecast. U.S. Treasury yields accelerated to a two-week high. Following are currency quotes late in U.S. trade on Thursday: EUR/USD: The Euro (EUR) against the Dollar (USD) tumbled to 1.0886, marking a decrease of 0.56 percent or -0.0061. USD/JPY: The Japanese Yen (JPY) fell to 148.29, showing a decline of 0.37 percent or -0.54. USD/CAD: The Canadian Dollar (CAD) weakened to 1.3533, indicating a fall of 0.47 percent or -0.0062. GBP/USD: The British Pound (GBP) slid to 1.2749, showing a decrease of 0.37 percent or -0.0047. USD/CHF: The Swiss Franc (CHF) dived to 0.8839, demonstrating a drop of 0.57 percent or -0.0050. AUD/USD: The Australian Dollar (AUD) stood at 0.6579, indicating a decrease of 0.63 percent or -0.0041. NZD/USD: The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) against the US Dollar (USD) last traded at 0.6129, marking a decrease of 0.44 percent or -0.0026. Global Stock Markets Report: Mixed Trends on Thursday Global stock markets experienced a mix of movements Thursday as investors navigated through various economic and geopolitical factors. Here’s a comprehensive overview of the closing stock market quotes for key indices around the world: CANADA S&P/TSX Composite index (^GSPTSE): Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite index finished at 21,829.85, showing a decline of 140.26 points or 0.64 percent. UNITED KINGDOM FTSE 100 (^FTSE): The UK’s FTSE 100 closed at 7,743.15, showing a decrease of 29.02 points or 0.37 percent. EUROPE DAX PERFORMANCE-INDEX (^GDAXI): Germany’s DAX PERFORMANCE-INDEX ended at 17,942.04, down by 19.34 points or 0.11 percent. CAC 40 (^FCHI): In France, the CAC 40 closed at 8,161.42, marking an increase of 23.84 points or 0.29 percent. ESTX 50 PR.EUR (^STOXX50E): Europe’s ESTX 50 PR.EUR closed at 4,993.12 Thursday, showing a slight decrease of 7.43 points or 0.15 percent. Euronext 100 Index (^N100): The Euronext 100 Index ended at 1,494.29, down by 1.37 points or 0.09 percent. BEL 20 (^BFX): Belgium’s BEL 20 closed at 3,691.85, indicating a decrease of 36.64 points or 0.98 percent. RUSSIA MOEX Russia Index (IMOEX.ME): In Moscow, the MOEX Russia Index finished at 2,222.51, showing a decrease of 4.14 points or 0.19 percent. ASIA Nikkei 225 (^N225): Japan’s Nikkei 225 finished at 38,807.38 Thursday, showing a gain of 111.41 points or 0.29 percent. HANG SENG INDEX (^HSI): In Hong Kong, the HANG SENG INDEX closed at 16,961.66, down by 120.45 points or 0.71 percent. SSE Composite Index (000001.SS): China’s SSE Composite Index ended at 3,038.23 Thursday, indicating a decrease of 5.60 points or 0.18 percent. Shenzhen Index (399001.SZ): The Shenzhen Index in China closed at 9,555.42, showing a decline of 49.58 points or 0.52 percent. STI Index (^STI): Singapore’s STI Index ended at 3,186.40, marking an increase of 25.68 points or 0.81 percent. S&P BSE SENSEX (^BSESN): In India, the S&P BSE SENSEX finished at 73,097.28, showing a gain of 335.39 points or 0.46 percent. NIFTY 50 (^NSEI): India’s NIFTY 50 closed at 22,146.65 Thursday, showing a gain of 148.95 points or 0.68 percent. IDX COMPOSITE (^JKSE): In Indonesia, the IDX COMPOSITE closed at 7,433.31, indicating a significant decrease of 7,421.21 points or 100.00 percent. FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (^KLSE): Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI ended at 1,543.75, showing an increase of 5.62 points or 0.37 percent. KOSPI Composite Index (^KS11): In Seoul, South Korea, the KOSPI Composite Index finished at 2,718.76, showing a gain of 25.19 points or 0.94 percent. TSEC weighted index (^TWII): Taiwan’s TSEC weighted index ended at 19,937.92, indicating a slight increase of 9.41 points or 0.05 percent. OCEANIA S&P/ASX 200 (^AXJO): In Australia on Thursday, the S&P/ASX 200 finished at 7,713.60, down by 15.80 points or 0.20 percent. ALL ORDINARIES (^AORD): Australia’s ALL ORDINARIES closed at 7,974.00, down by 15.50 points or 0.19 percent. S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS (^NZ50): Across the Tasman, in New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS closed at 11,808.33, down by 0.69 points or 0.01 percent. AFRICA Top 40 USD Net TRI Index (^JN0U.JO): The Top 40 USD Net TRI Index in Johannesburg, South Africa, ended at 3,838.52, marking a significant decrease of 96.68 points or 2.46 percent. MIDDLE EAST TA-125 (^TA125.TA): Israel’s TA-125 closed at 1,921.07 on Thursday, showing a decrease of 13.40 points or 0.69 percent. EGX 30 Price Return Index (^CASE30): In Cairo, Egypt, the EGX 30 Price Return Index ended at 31,316.40, showing a significant increase of 302.50 points or 0.98 percent. These results reflect the varied sentiments prevailing in the global markets, influenced by a range of factors including economic data releases, geopolitical developments, and investor sentiment. Market participants continue to monitor these dynamics closely as they position themselves for future opportunities and risks. (Note: All data is based on the closing figures as of Thursday, March 14, 2024. Market fluctuations may occur based on subsequent developments.)