Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq surge
Wall Street stocks were in full-throttle rally mode on Friday, with all three major indices surging to records following strong earnings reports from Intel and other companies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9 percent to finish the week at 26,616.71, its third straight record. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 1.2 percent to 2,872.87, and the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.3 percent to 7,505.77.
The records follow numerous earlier equities milestones in the wake of US tax cuts enacted last month. Company earnings announcements over the last several days have signaled higher profits ahead, further cheering investors. Investors shrugged off government data that put fourth-quarter US growth at 2.6 percent, below the 2.9 percent expected by analysts. AbbVie surged 13.8 percent, while Dow member Pfizer gained 4.8 percent and Gilead Sciences advanced 5.3 percent.
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Pakistan stocks undergo volatile session
The stock market endured a tumultuous session on the last trading day of the week, as the KSE-100 Index dipped massively in the early hours of trading, before managing a substantial recovery.
However, despite the support, the KSE-100 Index ended its second successive session in the red. At close day on Friday, the KSE-100 Index ended with a decrease of 265.58 points or 0.59 percent to finish at 44,551.13 points. The KSE-100 Index plunged as much as 629 points in intra-day trading, hitting a low of 44,196.57 points. Overall, trading volume increased to 271 million shares, compared with Thursday’s tally of 245 million. K-Electric was the volume leader with 39.2 million shares, gaining Rs0.11 to close at Rs6.89.
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Tokyo shares move higher
Tokyo stocks opened higher on Friday after US President Donald Trump said he favors a strong dollar, sending the Japanese currency lower against the greenback, a move positive for Japanese exporters.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.40 percent, or 95.03 points, to 23,764.52 in early trade while the broader Topix index was up 0.26 percent, or 4.91 points, at 1,889.47. On the Tokyo Stock Exchange, blue-chip exporters showed gains, with Nintendo up 1.42 percent at 48,450 yen and Sony up 2.50 percent at 5,380 yen.Suzuki Motor dropped 4.04 percent to 6,150 yen after its Indian unit reportedly approved a change in the way it calculates royalties that will result in lower payments for new models.
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Hong Kong stocks soar
Hong Kong equities bounced back from the previous day’s losses to end Friday’s morning session with a bang, rising more than one percent to a new record. The Hang Seng Index climbed 1.31 percent, or 429.35 points, to 33,083.80 by the break.
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Nigerian shares drop for fourth session
Nigerian stocks shed 1.5 percent on Thursday to drop for the fourth straight session after shares in the relatively liquid banking sector sank.
Stock dropped to 43,309 points by mid-session, spooked partly by a political impasse which could threaten the central bank’s independence and as investors booked profit from recent rallies.
The main index is up 15 percent so far in January, however, extending last year’s 42 percent gain.Banking sector shares lost 1.1 percent, led by Diamond Bank and Skye Bank each down more than 9 percent.
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Sri Lankan stocks up as foreign buying boosts turnover
Sri Lankan shares rose on Thursday for a second straight session, helped by gains in telecom and banking shares, with foreign investor purchases in Commercial Bank of Ceylon Plc boosting sentiment and turnover.
The Colombo Stock index ended 0.12 percent firmer at 6,448.21.Shares in Dialog Axiata Plc rose 2.3 percent, while Cargills (Ceylon) Plc gained 2.7 percent and biggest listed lender Commercial Bank of Ceylon Plc ended 0.7 percent up.Turnover was 1.33 billion rupees ($8.65 million), with foreign buying accounting for around 85.8 percent of the turnover. Last year’s daily average was 915.3 million rupees.
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Canadian index ends higher
Canada’s main stock index rose on Friday, led by shares in Bombardier, which closed up 15 percent after it won an unexpected trade victory against US planemaker Boeing Co.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index unofficially closed up 35.21 points, or 0.22 percent, at 16,239.22. Nine of the index’s 10 main groups ended higher.
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New Zealand stocks slip
New Zealand shares fell in lacklustre trade on Friday, pressured by healthcare and dairy stocks, but finished the week in the black even as stock markets in Australia were closed for a public holiday.
New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index ended 0.7 percent or 58.36 points lower at 8,311.42 in its worst session since January 11.The index however ended higher for a tenth week in eleven, up 0.3 percent. Dairy firm a2 Milk Company Ltd was the biggest drag on the index, easing from recent record highs with a 2.2 percent drop.