Some major changes in world stock markets in December 2022 with great influence on the world economy.
France stocks lower at the close of trade
France stocks were lower after the close on Thursday, as losses in the Gas & Water, General Financial and Foods & Drugs sectors led shares lower. At the close in Paris, the CAC 40 declined 0.95 percent, while the SBF 120 index lost 0.92 percent. Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Paris Stock Exchange by 320 to 226 and 84 ended unchanged. The CAC 40 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of CAC 40 options, was unchanged by 0.00 percent to 18.96 a new 52-week high. Gold Futures for February delivery was down 1.33 percent or 24.25 to $1,801.15 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in February fell 1.43 percent or 1.12 to hit $77.17 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract fell 1.67 percent or 1.37 to trade at $80.83 a barrel.
S&P 500 futures are flat
Stock futures were little changed Friday as traders try to recover some of the ground lost in the previous session. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 62 points or 0.2 percent. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.1 percent each. Friday’s moves followed another down session for markets as December’s sell-off resumed and hopes for a Santa Claus rally faded. The Dow on Thursday tumbled 348.99 points, or 1.05 percent, but finished well off its 803-point low. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dove 1.45 percent and 2.18 percent, respectively. Those losses put the S&P 500 down 0.8 percent for the week, on pace for its third-straight weekly decline. The Nasdaq Composite meanwhile has lost 2.1 percent this week. The Dow has been the outperformer this week, gaining 0.3 percent. For December, the S&P 500 has lost more than 6 percent, while the Dow and Nasdaq have lost 4.5 percent and 8.7 percent, respectively. It would be the biggest monthly decline for the major averages since September. Stocks are also on pace for their worst annual performance since 2008.
Sensex below 59,900
Indian markets entered into a sharp hysteric selling on Friday which led both Sensex and Nifty to topple by nearly 2 percent each. The 30-scrip index erased the 61,000 mark! Meanwhile, forgetting the even 18,000 mark, the benchmark Nifty glided to even below 17,900 levels. This would be the fourth consecutive day fall in Indian stocks this week. As for the rupee, the local currency weakened marginally against the US dollar. The mayhem on Friday was due to a steep selloff in global cues as apart from renewed fear of a rise in Covid cases in major economies, the better-than-expected US GDP Q3 data further signaled for more rate hikes by US Fed to tame inflation.
Tokyo’s Nikkei index closes higher
Tokyo’s Nikkei index ended higher on Monday as investors looked for fresh trading clues while markets assessed the implications of solid jobs report for US monetary policy. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fluctuated through the day before ending up 0.15 percent, or 42.50 points, at 27,820.40, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.31 percent, or 6.08 points, to 1,947.90. The market lacked a clear sense of direction after a mixed close on Wall Street, and ahead of the release of US inflation data and a Federal Reserve meeting next week. On Friday, official data showed that the United States added more jobs than anticipated in November, while the unemployment rate remained steady. The data also indicated a bigger jump in hourly wages than forecast. In general, stronger economic data is considered something that could lead to faster interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, a negative for stock prices.
UK’s FTSE 100 muted ahead of the long holiday weekend
UK’s FTSE 100 was flat on Friday, after a drop in the previous session on fears of higher-for-longer interest rates and ahead of an extended weekend for the holidays. The export-oriented FTSE 100 shed 0.01 percent, while the domestically oriented FTSE 250 lost 0.08 percent by 0827 GMT. Banks dropped 0.3 percent, but gains in healthcare firms such as GSK and the consumer staples sector helped limit losses. The FTSE closed lower on Thursday after data showed the U.S. economy rebounded faster than previously estimated in the third quarter, while another set of data showed the labor market remained strong, which stoked fears the Federal Reserve would stick to its aggressive monetary policy stance.
The real reason S&P 500 crashed
The S&P 500 crashed more than 100 points Thursday morning after someone yelled “fire!” and impulsive traders climbed over each other trying to get out. What was the catalyst for Thursday’s selling? Easy, there wasn’t one. This panic resulted from impulsive traders spooked by their own shadows and the herd following them out the door. But this isn’t a surprise. This was the second to last trading session before the Christmas holiday, and institutional investors are already at their vacation chalets. Without big money’s guiding hand, there was no one to keep impulsive retail traders in check, and like irresponsible teenagers given too much responsibility, these retail traders made poor decisions.
BTC fear & greed index slips
On Thursday, bitcoin (BTC) slipped by 0.04 percent. Following a 0.47 percent decline on Wednesday, BTC ended the day at $16,838. Notably, BTC failed to revisit $17,000 for the fifth time in six sessions. A mixed start to the day saw BTC rise to an early morning low of $16,873. However, coming up short of the First Major Resistance Level (R1) at $16,936, BTC fell to a late afternoon low of $16,588. BTC fell through the First Major Support Level (S1) at $16,752 and the Second Major Support Level (S2) at $16,659 before a late rebound to end the day at $16,838. On Thursday, US economic indicators and US corporate news sent the NASDAQ Index and BTC into the red. Better-than-expected US stats fueled recessionary fears, with the numbers supporting a more aggressive Fed interest rate trajectory.
In the week ending December 16, initial jobless claims rose from 214k to 216k.