· Stocks rose on Wednesday as strong quarterly results from retailers such as Target and Lowe's lifted investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 240.29 points higher, or 0.9%, at 26,202.73. The S&P 500 gained 0.8% to close at 2,924.43. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.9% to 8,020.21. The major indexes held on to their gains even after the bond market flashed a recession signal in the last hour of trading.
The better-than-expected results come at a time when traders are worried about a possible U.S. economic slowdown. Those fears have led investors away from riskier assets like equities in favor of traditionally safer assets like gold and Treasurys.
· European stocks closed higher Wednesday as investors awaited minutes from a meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve, while President Donald Trump suggested he was weighing measures to boost the world’s largest economy.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed provisionally up over 1.1% , autos leading gains with a 1.7% jump as all sectors and major bourses traded firmly in positive territory.
· Asia Pacific markets traded up on Thursday, likely taking cues from Wall Street, where stocks gained overnight after strong quarterly results lifted investor sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 traded up 0.36% while the Topix index added 0.18%. Japanese manufacturing activity shrank for a fourth straight month in August as export orders fell at a sharper pace, Reuters reported citing a preliminary business survey.
South Korea’s Kospi index slipped 0.25% in early trade while Australia’s ASX 200 gained 0.38%.
Reference: CNBC
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