Would you like to receive notifications on latest updates of the following headlines?

Stock Market: Global Markets Wobble after Fed Sticks with Current Interest Rates

POSTED ON May 2, 2024 •   Business      BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara
A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Thursday, May 2, 2024, in Tokyo. Eugene Hoshiko - staff l Credit: Association Press l Source: mankatofreepress.com

World markets wobbled in trading after U.S. stocks swung to a mixed finish with the Federal Reserve delaying cuts to interest rates.

U.S. shares were set to rise, as the futures for the S&P 500 surged 0.5% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 0.4% higher.

European markets opened mixed ahead of a busy day for corporate earnings. London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.4% to 8,155.28 in early trading. Germany’s DAX edged less than 0.1% lower to 17,925.06 and the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.7% to 7,926.97.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.1% and closed at 38,236.07.

The Japanese yen surged as much as 2% in early Asia hours Thursday, driven by speculation of another round of yen-buying intervention by Japanese authorities and a weaker U.S. dollar following the Fed meeting. Later, the yen reversed its course and erased its previous gains. The dollar was trading at 155.44 yen, up from 154.91 yen.

“As expected, Japan’s Ministry of Finance, via the Bank of Japan, was back selling U.S. dollars to stabilize the yen. Indeed, the Japanese government is digging into their sizable 1.2 trillion USD war chest, looking to take profit on the dollar they bought back in 2000," Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said in a commentary.

He said the hope was to stabilize the yen at around 155-157 to the dollar.

In South Korea, the Kospi was down 0.3% to 2,683.65 after official data showed consumer prices in April rose 2.9% year on year, a slower pace compared to March.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 2.4% to 18,187.56. Other markets in China remained closed for the Labor Day holiday.

Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.2% to 7,587.00.

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 fell 0.3% to 5,018.39 after the Fed held its main interest rate at its highest level since 2001, just as markets expected. The index had rallied as much as 1.2% in the afternoon before giving up all the gains at the end of trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% to 37,903.29, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.3% to 15,605.48.

On the downside for financial markets, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said out loud the fear that's recently sent stock prices lower and erased traders' hopes for imminent cuts in interest rates: “In recent months, inflation has shown a lack of further progress toward our 2% objective.”

He also said that it will likely take "longer than previously expected” to get confident enough to cut rates, a move that would ease pressure on the economy and investment prices.

At the same time, though, Powell calmed a fear swirling in the market that inflation has remained so high that additional hikes to rates may be necessary.

“I think it’s unlikely that the next policy rate move will be a hike,” he said.

The Fed also offered financial markets some assistance by saying it would slow the pace of how much it’s shrinking its holdings of Treasurys. Such a move could grease the trading wheels in the financial system, offering stability in the bond market.

Traders themselves had already downshifted their expectations for rate cuts this year to one or two, if any, after coming into the year

READ ALSO
IMF urges Nigeria to exercise fiscal caution amid economic reforms
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 24, 2025 0

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on Nigeria to exercise caution in its expenditures...

READ ALSO
FG urges IMF, World Bank to bolster economic reforms in sub-saharan Africa
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 24, 2025 0

Finance Minister Wale Edun has emphasized the need for increased global assistance to reform economi...

READ ALSO
Nigeria's Economic Reforms Boost Sovereign Credit Profile - IMF
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 23, 2025 0

The Assistant Director for Global Markets at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Jason Wu,  ...

READ ALSO
Trade Wars Take Center Stage at IM ,World Bank Spring Meetings
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 22, 2025 0

Global finance leaders are convening in Washington this week for the semi-annual meetings of the Int...

READ ALSO
Kano secures $10bn investment for renewable energy, minerals in partnership with Morocco
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 21, 2025 0

KANO, Nigeria (NAN) - The government of Kano state has announced that it will secure more than $10 b...

READ ALSO
RMAFC, ALGON collaborate to strengthen LG financial autonomy
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 18, 2025 0

The Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Dr. Mohammed Bell...

READ ALSO
LCCI, NIXIN call for government support to revitalize Nigeria's paper manufacturing industry
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 18, 2025 0

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), in collaboration with NIXIN Paper Mill Nigeria Li...

READ ALSO
Cross River to rejuvenate rubber estates after out-of-court settlement with Enghaut industries
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 18, 2025 0

CROSS RIVERS, Nigeria - The Cross River State Government, along with Enghaut Industries, has reached...

OUR CHANNELS:

FG commends Ghana for rescuing 219 trafficked Nigerians from cybercrime
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

ABUJA, Nigeria - The federal government has praised the Ghanaian authorities for rescuing at least 2...


Tinubu meets security chiefs, Calls for swift action against ongoing violence
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

ABUJA, Nigeria - President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called for an immediate end to the ongoing violence...


FG releases ₦50Bn for university staff unions, A commitment to educational reform
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, announced on Wednesday that the federal govern...


Fani-Kayode criticises Mutfwang's leadership amid security crisis
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

PLATEAU, Nigeria - Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, and former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-K...


Father demands justice as Nigerian correctional service dismisses kidnapping allegations
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria - Ogunsinasi Oluwaseyi, the father of 12-year-old Oluwaseyi Favour, who was r...


Ogun shuts  four companies for environmental violations
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

OGUN, Nigeria (NAN) - The Ogun state government, via its Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA), ha...


IMF urges Nigeria to exercise fiscal caution amid economic reforms
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on Nigeria to exercise caution in its expenditures...


FG urges IMF, World Bank to bolster economic reforms in sub-saharan Africa
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 24, 2025 0

Finance Minister Wale Edun has emphasized the need for increased global assistance to reform economi...


LASG short 66,000 healthcare practitioners, threat to quality services delivery
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

LAGOS, Nigeria - The Lagos State Government is grappling with a significant shortage of medical prac...


Pope Francis to be buried April 26
BY Abiodun Saheed Omodara April 27, 2025 0

Pope Francis’s funeral will be held on Saturday, the Vatican announced Tuesday, as world leade...


More Articles

Load more...

Menu