SN: Wall Street Pre-Bell Optimistic, Europe Up; Oils Up, Futures Green, Asia Up
Wall Street pre-bell Friday appears poised to finish the week higher, as Europe is trading sharply up, oils are above $38 a barrel, U.S. stock index futures are showing thick green arrows, and Asian stock markets closed up. The International Energy Agency reported Friday that the worst of the oil price crash may be history, as non-OPEC production is falling faster than expected and Iran’s return to world markets is somewhat snarled. On the scant economic calendar are import and export prices at 8:30 am ET. In Europe Friday, the British FTSE 100 is up 1.74%; the French CAC is up 2.62%; the German Dax is up 2.72%; and the Euronext 100 is up 2.41%. The pundits say the gains are a delayed reaction to the European Central Bank stimulus package unveiled Thursday.
In the futures, the S&P 500 is up 1.09%; the Nasdaq is up 1.32%; and the Dow is up 0.96%. After morning-session jitters, Asian stock markets largely rallied on Friday, closing higher on the larger-than-expected ECB stimulus package, and strong oil prices. Tokyo rose on a weaker yen, while a move by the mainland People’s Bank of China to boost the yuan buoyed sentiments in Hong Kong. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.51%, as traders took belated afternoon-session courage from the ECB expansionist policies, and also a weaker yen, considered a positive in export-oriented Japan. The broad measure Nikkei 225 rose 86.52 to 16,938.87, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 149 to 69.
The Nikkei 225 is down 11.01% YTD. The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index budged up 1.08%, as traders embraced a move by the mainland People’s Bank of China to raise the exchange rate of the yuan, saw strong oil prices, and reviewed the ECB package. The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 215.18 to 20,199.60, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 44 to six. The Hang Seng is off 7.82% YTD. On the mainland, the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index (SHCOMP) rose 0.20% to 2,810.31. The index is off 20.59% YTD. On other exchanges, the S. Korean Kospi rose 0.11% and is in the black for the year; the Taiwan TWSE rose 0.52%; in Mumbai the Sensex inclined 0.38%; the Singapore Straits Times index gained 0.70%; the Thai Set rose 1.01% and is up 8.18% YTD; and the resource-heavy Australian S&P/ASX 200 use 0.32%.
The stock decreased 0.03% or $5.23 on March 10, hitting $16995.13. It is down 6.00% since February 10, 2016 and is uptrending. It has outperformed by 11.25% the S&P500.
