STRONG JOBS DATA INCREASE NASDAQ; WEAK IBM HITS DOW
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were boosted early Friday by a solid US jobs report, but the Dow dipped on news Warren Buffett sold shares of IBM. After a slow March, when hiring probable was held down by a winter storm, the US economic engine added an estimated 211,000 net new positions in April while the jobless rate declined a tenth to 4.4 percent, the lowest since May 2007.
Buffett, meanwhile, told CNBC he divested about one-third of his shares in IBM following disappointing results.
IBM shares fell 2.5 percent, pressuring the Dow.
About 12 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had slipped to 20,926.92, down 0.1 percent. The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to 2,391.77, as did the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index which was up to 6,083.94.
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EUROPEAN SHARES HIGHER ON US JOBS REPORT, FRENCH ELECTION
European stocks closed the week higher on Friday after key US jobs data came in better than expected and as investors readied themselves for the final round of the French presidential election at the weekened.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the solid US jobs report boosted the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices in New York, but the Dow dipped on news that Warren Buffett had sold shares of IBM.
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MSCI EXCITEMENT SEES KSE-100 GAIN AGGRESSIVELY
Buoyed by the upcoming MSCI reclassification, Pakistan stocks continued their jubilant ride with the KSE-100 Index surging end to 800 points in intra-day trading and crossing the threshold of 50,000.
However, profit-taking at high levels meant the index settled 567.48 points up after momentum slowed down a bit.
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The market’s excitement can mainly be attributed to the upcoming MSCI’s transition, which will change Pakistan’s status from frontier to emerging. This is predicted to stimulate fresh foreign investment from around the globe.
At close, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE 100-share Index recorded a rise of 567.48 points, or 1.15 percent, to end at 49,851.13. It is said that the local bourse remained largely in the ‘green zone’ during the last trading day of the week as KSE-100 index gained to make an intraday high of +815 points, closing up 567 points at 49,851 levels. Overall, trading volumes rose to 308 million shares compared with Thursday’s tally of 287 million. Shares of 390 firms were traded.
At the end of the day, 217 stocks closed higher and 152 declined while 21 remained unchanged. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs17.7 billion. Engro Polymer was the volume leader with 37.5 million shares, gaining Rs0.57 to close at Rs30.93.
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TSX HIGHER AS FINANCIAL SHARES LEAD BROAD GAINS
Canada’s main stock index rose shortly after the open on Friday as financial stocks led broad gains.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index grew 30.58 points, or 0.2 percent, to 15,427.28 shortly after the open, as eight of the index’s 10 main groups advanced.
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HONG KONG SHARES END WITH LOSSES
Hong Kong stocks closed the week with big losses as energy firms were hit by a plunge in oil prices, while investors await the release of key US jobs data later in the day.
The Hang Seng Index shed 0.84 percent, or 207.53 points, to 24,476.35. And the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.78 percent, or 24.33 points, to 3,103.04 while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China’s second exchange, sank 1.24 percent, or 23.57 points, to 1,872.79.
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SRI LANKA STOCKS HIGHER
Sri Lanka stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Information Technology, Construction & Engineering and Footwear & Textile sectors led shares higher. At the close in Colombo, the CSE All-Share gained 0.58percent to hit a new 6-month high.
The best performers of the session on the CSE All-Share were Amana Takaful PLC, which rose 33.33 percent or 0.300 points to trade at 1.200 at the close. Meanwhile, Nanda Investments and Finance PLC added 17.73 percent or 2.50 points to end at 16.60 and SMB Leasing PLC was up 14.29 percent or 0.1000 points to 0.8000 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were PCH Holdings PLC, which fell 11.11 percent or 0.100 points to trade at 0.800 at the close.
Palm Garden Hotels PLC declined 5.03 percent or 1.50 points to end at 28.30 and Kotagala Plantations PLC (CM:KOTA) was down 4.72 percent or 0.60 points to 12.10.
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BSE 4Q NET PROFIT SURGES
Leading stock exchange BSE reported more than three-fold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 72.66 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2016 -17. In comparison, the bourse had a net profit of Rs 20.24 crore in the January-March quarter of the previous fiscal, 2015-16, BSE said in a filing to the NSE.
Besides, total income of the exchange rose to Rs 231.13 crore during the fourth quarter of 2016-17 from Rs 190.31 crore in the year-ago period. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017, BSE has a net profit of Rs 265.09 crore as compared to Rs 177.13 crore in 2015-16.
BSE’s total income surged to Rs 800.75 crore in the just concluded financial year (2016-17) from Rs 670.09 crore in the preceding fiscal. The exchange’s group firms include CDSL, Indian Clearing Corporation, BSE Institute, BSE Investments and BSE Sammaan.