Stocks hit record following Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, oil rallies
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
NEW YORK, April 16 : Global stocks rallied to a fresh record on Thursday as the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon boosted sentiment, but oil prices also rose as global supply buffers continue to dwindle with the key Strait of Hormuz still blockaded.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Lebanon and Israel had agreed on a 10-day ceasefire, saying the next meeting between the U.S. and Iran may take place over the weekend. Negotiators have scaled back some of their ambitions for those talks, two Iranian sources told Reuters, as the U.S. Navy is also now preventing Iranian vessels from transiting the strait.
Israel has been waging a parallel campaign against Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. Trump, in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, said that Israeli and Lebanese leaders had agreed to begin a 10-day ceasefire.
U.S. stocks advanced, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closing at records for the second consecutive session, led by a 1.6 per cent increase in the S&P 500 energy index. The Nasdaq has now climbed for 12 straight sessions, its longest winning streak since July 2009.
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose 3.26 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 1,064.19 after hitting an intraday record of 1,065.59, while the pan-European STOXX 600 index edged down 0.05 per cent.
A PULLBACK IN THE OFFING?
The market's surge has some investors believing that equities are due to retrench a bit.
"The war is still the single most important driver of the market. It would be very unusual for us to break through to new all-time highs like we did yesterday and not stall here and probably go back and retest," said Robert Phipps, a director at Per Stirling Capital Management in Austin, Texas.
"The rubber band was very stretched to the downside. It has snapped back and is no longer stretched to the downside."
Crude futures have bounced all over the place in recent days, often swinging on the latest optimistic pronouncement from Trump over an imminent end to the conflict that would see the Strait of Hormuz - used to move one-fifth of the world's oil and gas supply - reopened.
On Thursday, oil climbed, with U.S. crude settling up 3.7 per cent to $94.69 a barrel, while Brent settled at $99.39 per barrel, up 4.7 per cent.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 115 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 48,578.72, the S&P 500 gained 18.33 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 7,041.28 and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 86.69 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 24,102.70.
U.S. beverages giant PepsiCo gained 2.3 per cent after surpassing quarterly profit estimates. Healthcare company Abbott Laboratories, brokerage Charles Schwab and insurer Travelers all lost ground after reporting results.
The U.S. dollar rose, retracing some of its recent losses, after weekly U.S. initial jobless claims were lower than expected last week. The index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.22 per cent to 98.22.
The index had declined for eight straight sessions through Wednesday, giving up most of the gains it had enjoyed as the war increased its appeal as a safe haven.
Gold prices were little changed. Spot gold edged up 0.02 per cent to $4,790.79 an ounce while U.S. gold futures rose 0.08 per cent to $4,803.70 an ounce.
Newsletter
Week in Review
Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review
Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app