On Wednesday, June 12th, U.S. stock markets closed mixed as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit record highs for the third day running, fueled by lower-than-expected inflation data.
However, they pulled back from their peaks after the Federal Reserve indicated it plans only one rate cut this year, despite earlier forecasts for three cuts.
In economic data, May’s annual CPI inflation dipped to 3.3%, slightly below the expected 3.4%. The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 5.25-5.50% for the seventh straight meeting, as expected.
Most sectors of the S&P 500 ended higher, led by strong gains in information technology, consumer discretionary, and industrials. However, the energy and consumer staples sectors closed down.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.09% and closed at 38,712.21. The S&P 500 rose 0.85%, ending the day at 5,421.03, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.54%, finishing the session at 17,610.79.
Asian Markets Today
- On Thursday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.47%, ending the session at 38,713.50, led by losses in the Paper & Pulp, Finance & Investment, and Textile sectors.
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.44%, ending the day at 7,749.70, led by gains in the IT, Healthcare, and A-REITs sectors.
- India’s Nifty 50 gained 0.33% to close at 23,398.90, and the Nifty 500 closed higher by 0.52% at 22,074.30.
- China’s Shanghai Composite was down 0.28%, ending the session at 3,028.92, and the Shenzhen CSI fell 0.51%, closing at 3,526.13.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended the session higher by 0.97% at 18,112.63.
Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET
- The European STOXX 50 index declined 1.12%.
- Germany’s DAX slid 1.27%.
- France’s CAC was down 1.32%.
- U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded lower by 0.56%.
- European stock markets declined due to a hawkish stance from the Federal Reserve, which suggested fewer rate cuts than previously anticipated, increasing concerns over future monetary easing.
Commodities at 06:15 AM ET
- Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 1.02% at $77.72/bbl, and Brent was down 0.88% at $81.87 bbl.
- Crude oil prices declined Thursday due to an unexpected increase in U.S. crude inventories and the International Energy Agency’s reduced oil demand forecast for 2024.
- Natural Gas declined 0.26% to $3.037.
- Gold was trading lower by 0.86% at $2,334.65, Silver fell 2.87% to $29.427, and Copper was down 0.70% to $4.5352.
US Futures at 06:15 AM ET
Dow futures were down 0.34%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.05%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.55%.
Forex at 06:15 AM ET
The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.15% to 104.81, USD/JPY was up 0.29% at 157.16, and USD/AUD rose 0.15% to 1.5033.
Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock
