Wall Street closed significantly higher on Thursday following a positive earnings report from Meta Platforms lifted previously battered technology and growth-related shares and countered by concerns regarding the US economy’s first-quarter contraction.
Shares of the company that owns Facebook jumped 17.6% following the social network reported higher-than-expected profits and recovered from a decline in the number of users.
Apple and Amazon shares also rose more than 4 percent.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index closed up 2.47 percent, to end the session at 4,287.50 points.
The Nasdaq index rose 3.06% to 12,871.53 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.85% to 33,916.39 points.
Europe shares
European shares rose from their lowest level in six weeks reached in the previous session, as concerns regarding slowing global economic growth eased following the announcement of better-than-expected results for companies, including energy major Total Energies and Volvo Cars, the car maker.
The European Stoxx 600 index closed up 0.6 percent, but it was below its highest levels during the session, as it was affected by data on the growth of the American economy that indicated a contraction in the first quarter of the year, in addition to German inflation, which came higher than expected, which stimulated bets on a faster pace of policy tightening. cash from the European Central Bank.
April was a volatile month for stock markets globally, with the Stoxx 600 dropping to its lowest level in more than a month at one point due to concerns regarding interest rate hikes, valuations of US technology companies, the conflict in Ukraine and coronavirus-related lockdowns in China.
But the index rose during the day, supported by strong business results, as France’s Total Energies rose 3.7% following announcing plans to buy back its shares following core profits rose significantly with the rise in oil and gas prices.
Auto stocks advanced 2.2 percent. Volvo Cars shares jumped 8 percent following its profits exceeded analysts’ expectations, as demand for its products remained strong.
Standard Chartered shares jumped 14.2 percent following it announced positive quarterly results.
Technology shares received a boost from better-than-expected results from Meta Platforms, along with a 17.5 percent increase announced by software specialist Temenos following a report on a possible takeover bid.
Healthcare shares took a hit, with Sanofi falling 0.9 percent, even though its quarterly profit beat estimates.
Japanese stocks
Japanese stocks rose on Thursday following the Bank of Japan reiterated its commitment to ultra-loose monetary policy and investors were relieved that there were no surprises negatively affecting the stock market.
The Nikkei index rose 1.75 percent at the close, recording 26,847.90 points, the largest daily increase since April 13, following falling earlier in the session. The broader Topix index jumped 2.09%, the highest increase since March 23, to record 1,899.62 points.
Toyota Motor shares rose 3.23 percent, and it was one of the largest stocks that supported the Topix index, with the yen falling to its lowest level in 20 years once morest the dollar. Shares of Advantest, which makes chip-making equipment, jumped 4.29 percent and was the biggest supporter of the Nikkei index.
The 1.34 percent drop in shares of Fast Retailing, operator of clothing stores Uniqlo, was the biggest pressure on the Nikkei. (Archyde.com)
