On Monday, the dollar ended the day mixed against its major rivals. GBPUSD eased to monthly lows around 1.2251 under pressure of scarce progress in Brexit talks. EURUSD teased 1.1300 but gave it all up to close with little change around its open. Gold finished without much advance nor decline, ending around $1,770 a troy ounce.
Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced by 580 points, or 2.3%, to end at 25,596. S&P 500 index added 1.5% to 3,053, led by a 3.2% surge in industrials and a 2.1% rally in communication services. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 1.2% to close at around 9,874.
The US dollar suffered on Tuesday amid high risk-on mood. Equities showed phenomenal performance with the S&P 500 posting its best quarterly advance in 20 years. Major pairs remained within familiar levels. GBPUSD recovered to settle around 1.2400 despite grim Brexit headlines. EURUSD remained unchanged for the month of June around 1.1200.
Gold prices soared in a brief panic response to US Fed’s chief Powell’s mention of an extraordinary uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook due to the pandemic. Spot reached a multi-year high of $1,785. Crude Oil prices rallied with WTI teasing $40.00 per barrel.
The S&P 500 gained 1.5% to 3,100 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, added 0.9%, or 217 points, to 25,812. The Nasdaq Composite put on a further 1.9% to end at 10,059. In terms of quarter performance, the S&P rallied 18%, the Nasdaq Composite soared 29.4%, and the Dow ended higher by 15.6%.
On Wednesday, market mood remained high keeping the US dollar suppressed against major rivals. EURUSD remained limited by grim Brexit outlook, unable to break above 1.1270. USDJPY surrendered three-week high of 108.16, and settled around 107.50. Gold eased to $1,770 a troy ounce amid risk-on mood.
S&P 500 unofficially closed up 15.75 points, or 0.51%, at 3,116.04. NASDAQ unofficially closed up 94.92 points, or 0.94%, at 10,153.69. Dow Jones unofficially closed down 74.66 points, or 0.29%, at 25,738.22.
Thursday was filled with excitement as the US Nonfarm Payroll report showed the country adding 4.8 million jobs in June with unemployment rate falling to 11.1%. However optimism lost speed as a record 51,000 new cases of COVID-19 were reported. Benchmarks trimmed any gains managed from the employment figures excitement. Gold fell to 1,757.44 suffering temporarily due to the initial risk on mood. It however recovered to $1,776. Crude oil stayed within familiar levels, with WTI around $40.00.
The S&P 500 added 0.5%, its fourth-straight gain and ended the holiday-shortened week with a gain of 4%. The NASDAQ made another all-time high, aided by more gains in technology companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 92.39 points, or 0.4%, to 25,827.36.
On Friday, major pairs remained dull due to the US Independence day holiday. The dollar remained weak due to grim coronavirus situation in the US and rivals took advantage. Gold prices ended the day pretty much unchanged at $1,774.60 enjoying support at its level from risk aversion. Crude oil finished the day unchanged, but ended the week with gains.
The coronavirus will continue to take central stage as driver of markets in the days ahead.
Written by;
Nnadi Victor
An Independent Economics Researcher
