US Markets Close With Moderate Growth

Yesterday, the US stock market finished the trading session with moderate growth. What is more interesting is that the Standard & Poor’s 500 managed to break record highs, finishing the trading session with a 0.49% increase and reaching a level of 1854.29 points. In the meantime, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.46% traded on a level of 16272.65 points, and Nasdaq Composite went to plus by 0.63%, to the level of 4318.93 points.

Partly this increase was promoted by newly published data. Orders for long use goods in January were reduced by less than what was forecast, 1% instead of the expected 1.5%. However, data for December was revised towards a fall from -4.2% to -5.3%. The number of primary requests for unemployment benefits for the last week unexpectedly increased from the reconsidered 334 thousand to 348 thousand.

In the evening, investors were waiting for the speech of the Fed Chair – Janet Yellen, who, this time, sounded much softer and expressed a slightly different opinion since her last performance. She stated that the Fed might change their strategy of the exit from QE3, in the case we see further considerable changes in the economic picture. Yellen agreed that during the last 2 weeks, the macroeconomic statistical reports are much worse than at the end of the last year.

The situation in the commodities market is still stable, and more or less remains the same, Brent is down by 0.16% traded on a level of 108.79$ per barrel. WTI is losing 0.36% and is bargaining next to the level of 102.03$ per barrel. Gold is up by 0.06% on a level of 1332.64$ per troy ounce, and silver is down by 0.22% on a price of 21.30$ per troy ounce.

Today we are going to see data on CPI rate in the Eurozone, GDP data of the United States, as well as Michigan Consumer Sentiment and pending home sales.