Benzinga - by Akanksha Bakshi, Benzinga Editor.
On Monday, October 9, the U.S. stock markets closed higher despite the uncertainty caused by the Hamas-Israel conflict and a spike in oil prices.
The announcement of the conflict incited a surge in oil prices due to supply anxieties. However, lenient comments from Federal Reserve officials helped reverse initial declines in stock indexes.
The officials suggested that the recent increase in long-term U.S. Treasury bond yields might deter further hikes in the Fed’s short-term policy rate, alleviating some concerns among equity investors.
Major defense companies, alongside oil and gas giants, experienced a surge in their stock prices in the wake of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher by 0.59% at 33,604.65, the S&P 500 followed suit with an increase of 0.63%, settling at 4,335.66, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.39% to conclude at 13,484.24.
Asian Markets Today
- Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed higher by 2.48% at 31,763.50 on Tuesday, with gains led by the mining, marine transportation, and oil and coal sectors.
- The index marked its largest single-day increase in almost a year, a rise attributed to eased concerns over U.S. interest rate hikes and a boost in energy stocks.
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed by 1.01% to close at 7,040.60, buoyed by signs of easing inflation evident in NAB’s survey. Every sector posted gains, with technology and real estate leading the charge, each rising over 2%.
- China’s Shanghai Composite declined by 0.70% to end the session at 3,075.24, a drop linked to liquidity issues at Country Garden, a major real estate developer. The Shenzhen CSI 300 also fell, closing 0.75% lower at 3,657.13.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose by 0.74% to close at 17,702.00.
- The European STOXX 600 index was up 1.52%.
- Germany’s DAX increased 1.69%.
- France’s CAC rose 1.53%.
- The U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 1.54%.
- Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 0.28% at $86.13/bbl, and Brent was down 0.29% at $87.89/bbl.
- Natural Gas rose 0.36% to $3.388.
- Gold was trading higher by 0.38% at $1,871.45, Silver declined 0.10% to $21.902, and Copper was down 0.63% to $3.6232.
Dow futures were up 0.19%, S&P 500 futures increased 0.18%, while Nasdaq 100 futures rose by 0.20%.
Forex at 06:00 AM ET
The U.S. Dollar Index was down 0.22% to 105.86. USD/JPY gained 0.27% to 148.89, and AUD/USD declined by 0.06% to 1.5588.
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