Benzinga - by Lisa Levin, Benzinga Editor.
U.S. stocks traded mixed toward the end of trading, with the Dow Jones index gaining over 50 points on Friday.
The Dow traded up 0.19% to 35,339.66 while the NASDAQ fell 0.14% to 14,245.17. The S&P 500 also fell, dropping, 0.03% to 4,555.43. U.S. stock markets were closed Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday and will also close early today.
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Leading and Lagging Sectors
Energy shares surged by 0.8% on Friday.
In trading on Friday, communication services shares fell by 0.7%.
Top Headline
The S&P Global U.S. services PMI rose to 50.8 in November from 50.6 in the previous month, recording the highest reading in four months and higher than market estimates of 50.4.
Equities Trading UP
FLJ Group Limited (NASDAQ: FLJ) shares shot up 68% to $0.1815 after the company announced it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Alpha Mind Technology.
Shares of iRobot Corporation (NASDAQ: IRBT) got a boost, shooting 33% to $39.56. Amazon.com Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) proposed acquisition of iRobot is reportedly on the verge of receiving unconditional approval from European Union antitrust authorities.
iClick Interactive Asia Group Limited (NASDAQ: ICLK) shares were also up, gaining 24% to $3.73 after the company penned a merger deal with TSH Investment Holding and TSH Merger Sub Limited.
Equities Trading DOWN
Impel Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IMPL) shares dropped 28% to $0.56 after jumping 143% on Wednesday. Impel Pharmaceuticals recently announced exploration of strategic alternatives.
Shares of Cuentas Inc. (NASDAQ: CUEN) were down 12% to $1.2175 after declining 11% on Wednesday. Cuentas recently posted a narrower quarterly loss.
Bitfarms Ltd. (NASDAQ: BITF) was down, falling 9% to $1.0550 after the company announced a C$60 million private placement with U.S. institutional investors.
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Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded down 0.4% to $76.78 while gold traded up 0.4% at $1,999.70.
Silver traded up 2.7% to $24.315 on Friday while copper rose 0.3% to $3.7745.
Euro zone
European shares were mostly higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 gained 0.30%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.03% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 0.46% The German DAX rose 0.23% French CAC 40 climbed 0.25%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index rose 0.67%.
The Ifo Business Climate indicator for Germany climbed for the second straight month to a reading of 87.3 in November, while German economy contracted by 0.1% during the third quarter. Producer prices in Spain fell by 7.8% year-over-year in October versus a revised 8.5% fall in the previous month.
Asia Pacific Markets
Asian markets closed mostly lower on Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 gaining 0.52%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index falling 1.96% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index falling 0.68%. India’s S&P BSE Sensex, meanwhile, fell 0.1%.
The au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing PMI fell to 48.1 in November from 48.7 a month ago, while annual inflation rate accelerated to 3.3% in October from 3.0% a month ago. The index of leading economic indicators in Japan was revised higher to 108.9 in September versus a flash reading of 108.7, while index of coincident economic indicators came in at 114.7 in September, matching the flash reading.
Economics
The S&P Global U.S. services PMI rose to 50.8 in November from 50.6 in the previous month, recording the highest reading in four months and higher than market estimates of 50.4.
The S&P Global manufacturing PMI declined to 49.4 in November from 50 a month ago, and missing market expectations of 49.8.
The S&P Global composite PMI came in unchanged from the prior month at 50.7 for November.
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