European stocks ended mixed on the last trading day of the year. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed a shortened trading session 0.1% lower on Wednesday, with most sector indexes in negative territory. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.2%, bringing the index to an annual gain of 21.5% – its strongest yearly gain since 2009. Meanwhile, France's CAC 40 ended New Year's Eve down 0.2%, while Germany's DAX rose 0.6%. Italy's FTSE MIB gained 1.1%, bringing annual gains to 31.5% and its best year since 1998. Markets were open for a half-day of trading on Wednesday, and will be closed...
Japan's Nikkei index edged up 0.2% on Wednesday (December 23rd), reaching 50,519.41, following gains on Wall Street overnight. The rise was fueled by recently released US economic data, which painted a mixed picture but still showed resilience. Despite concerns about some indicators, solid employment data and a sharp rise in US corporate profits reinforced the view that the Federal Reserve is likely to keep interest rates unchanged at its upcoming January meeting. Among the best-performing stocks on Japan's main index, Screen Holdings surged 7.4%, while Sumitomo Metal Mining rose 4.2%, and...
The S&P 500 rose 0.6% to close at a new record on Tuesday (December 24th), while the Nasdaq also rose 0.6% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%, as technology and energy stocks led broad gains. Large-cap stocks mostly rose, led by Nvidia's 3% gain, while Apple rose 0.5%, Microsoft edged up 0.4%, Alphabet added 1.4%, Amazon rose 1.6%, MetaTrader 5 rose 0.5%, and Broadcom rose 2.3%. In contrast, the real estate and consumer staples sectors underperformed. Eli Lilly shares fell 0.5% despite the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approving Novo Nordisk's weight-loss pill....
European markets closed higher on Tuesday, paring the previous session's losses. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up 0.3%, notching a new record closing high, lifted by surging shares of Copenhagen-listed Novo Nordisk. That brings the benchmark's year-to-date gains to 16%. With a week to go, it looks on track for its third consecutive year of gains. Investors are watching Novo Nordisk stock after the Wegovy-maker gained FDA approval for the first-ever GLP-1 pill, giving the Danish firm a head start over U.S. rival Eli Lilly. Novo stock closed 9.2% higher as the best performer among...
Stocks fell slightly on Tuesday after delayed economic data came in well above expectations, signaling that the U.S. economy may be holding up better than originally thought. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 53 points lower, or 0.1%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite traded around the flatline. The Commerce Department reported that the U.S. economy expanded at 4.3% pace in the third quarter, much better than the 3.2% estimate that economists polled by Dow Jones had forecast. The report — which was postponed from its initially planned release date of Oct. 30 because of the...
European stocks edged higher on Tuesday, with the STOXX 50 up 0.1% and the STOXX 600 gaining 0.3% to reach a fresh record high, rebounding after a mildly negative session the previous day. The advance was led by the pharmaceutical sector. Shares of Novo Nordisk surged nearly 6% after the company received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to market an oral version of its obesity treatment, Wegovy, in the US. Other major drugmakers also posted gains, with AstraZeneca rising 0.8%, Novartis adding 0.7%, and Roche up 0.6%. Defensive sectors, including telecommunications and...