US stock markets have risen on Wednesday. At the end of trading in New York, the Dow was calculated at 40,669 points, a rise of 0.4 percent compared to the previous trading day.
Only a few minutes earlier, the broader S&P 500 was at around 5,565 points, 0.2 percent in the green and the technology exchange Nasdaq calculated the Nasdaq 100 at around 19,571 points, 0.1 percent in the green.
The signs for the eagerly awaited interest rate cuts have improved on Wednesday. As the US Department of Commerce announced, the price index for personal consumption expenditures – the preferred inflation indicator of the Fed – rose by 2.3 percent compared to the previous year in March. Thus, the increase was lower than in February, when it was 2.7 percent. According to a preliminary estimate published by the responsible statistical office on Wednesday, the US economy shrank by 0.3 percent on an annual basis in the first quarter. The provider of payroll services, ADP, also reported that unemployment in the private sector likely increased in April.
Under normal circumstances, this would mean that the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, should increasingly focus on the other side of its dual mandate, the maximum employment. However, given US President Donald Trump’s trade policy, the Fed has recently signaled that it is also willing to accept higher inflation – and thus possibly be more cautious with its interest rate policy.
The European common currency was weaker on Wednesday evening: A euro cost 1.1320 US dollars and a dollar was accordingly worth 0.8834 euros.
The gold price was weaker as well: An ounce cost around 3,294 US dollars (-0.7 percent). This corresponds to a price of 93.56 euros per gram.
The oil price, on the other hand, sank significantly: A barrel of North Sea crude oil cost around 63.12 US dollars on Wednesday evening, German time, which was 113 cents or 1.8 percent less than the previous trading day’s close.
Stock markets soar despite signs of weaker economy
