U.S. stocks post modest gains after Brexit agreement

U.S. stocks post modest gains after Brexit agreement

819
0
SHARE

The New York Stock Exchange on Thursday welcomed the announcement of an agreement on Brexit, but the gains were reduced during the session, waiting to know if this agreement will be approved by the British Parliament, which is scheduled to vote Saturday. Business results continued to drive the rating, with good surprises from Morgan Stanley (+1.5%) and Netflix (+2.47%), but a disappointment at IBM (5.5%). Negotiations are continuing between the United States and China on the details of their trade agreement, but political tensions have increased significantly around the situation in Hong Kong.

At closing, the Dow Jones index advanced 0.09% to 27,025 points, while the broad S & S index gained 0.28% to 2.997 pts, and Nasdaq Composite, rich in technology and biotechnology stocks, rose 0.4% to 8.156 pts. All three indexes are close to record highs last summer, the Dow Jones still having 1.2% to go, the S & P 500 only 0.93%, and the Nasdaq has yet to climb 2% to regain its peak.

In Europe, the stock markets experienced a volatile session before finishing slightly lower: -0.30% for the EuroStoxx 50 and -0.42% for the CAC 40 in Paris.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker confirmed on Thursday the conclusion of an agreement on Brexit. However, there remains a major obstacle to overcome, namely the adoption of this deal by the British Parliament, which remains uncertain at this stage. The labor opposition and especially the small unionist party Northern Ireland DUP, government ally, have already expressed their intention to reject the deal. Boris Johnson will not only have to convince all the members of his party, some of whom may be tempted to follow the DUP, but also to get away with some Labor.

In addition to Brexit, the markets observe with concern a rise in political tensions around Hong Kong, which could derail the trade agreement reached last week between the United States and China. Beijing said on Thursday that its officials continued to work on the drafting of the “Phase 1” agreement outlined last Friday, but the deterioration of diplomatic relations is sowing doubt in people’s minds.

NO COMMENTS

LEAVE A REPLY