FTSE 100 strengthens as Nasdaq, S&P 500 hit new all-time highs

US Markets: Wall Street advanced sharply at the open on Maonday, 22 November, as investors’ regathered optimism after the Biden administration nominated the present US Federal Reserve Chairperson Jerome Powell for the second consecutive term at the central bank, effectively exhibiting the confidence in the policy changes and the counter-protective actions effectuated under the Powell during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Amid the market-wide rally, Dow Industrials gained more than 320 points, the tech leader Nasdaq Composite and the wider share indicator S&P 500 jumped in a largely similar manner with both of them hitting fresh all-time highs.

Shares of Tesla spearheaded the gains amid the Nasdaq components, followed by the sharp increases in the stocks of Facebook, Apple, Mirosoft, Intel, Nvidia, Microchip Technology, NXP Semiconductors, Qualcomm, Adobe Systems and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

The existing home sales in the United States rising by 0.8% in October complemented the equity environment. The existing home sales surpassed the street estimate, reaching the highest level since January of 2021, data from the National Association of Realtors showed on Monday.

With the equity benchmarks hitting newer record highs, the chances of potential profit-booking in the terminal month of this year are seemingly higher as the stock indices have been on a rise since the quarterly corporate earnings period started with a considerable number of Wall Street corporations beating the market expectations, with a number of companies raising the full year outlook for earnings, as well as profitability.

Global markets saw record highs on Monday

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 238.16 points, or 0.67% to 35,840.14, the technology heavy barometer Nasdaq Composite advanced 142.90 points, or 0.89% to 16,200.34, while the broader benchmark S&P 500 soared 42.35 points, or 0.90% to 4,740.31. During the session so far, Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 have registered lifetime peaks at 16,212.23 and 4,743.83, respectively.

US Market News: Shares of Cisco Systems topped the 30-constituent heavy Dow Industrials on Monday with the stock rising a little more than 3%, followed by the upsurge in shares of Apple, Dow, JPMorgan Chase, Chevron, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Intel, Home Depot, Nike, McDonald’s Corporation, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Coca-Cola, Travelers Companies and Procter & Gamble. All the shares rose 1-3%, while the stocks of Boeing,Visa, Amgen and American Express dropped more than 1% each.

Meanwhile, shares of BioNTech and Moderna advanced in the trade today after the US FDA gave a go-ahead for booster shots for all adults in the US.

Shares of Tesla were on the rise after CEO and Co-founder Elon Musk Elon Musk revealed the launch plan of Tesla Model S Plaid in China. According to him, the model can be launched by March of 2022.

UK Markets: London equities regained lost ground in the afternoon trades, riding on the back of Wall Street optimism with the domestic benchmark index FTSE 100 nearing the psychological mark of 7,300, recovering from the four-week low recognised last week. As the equity markets remain dependent on higher consumer spending in the upcoming weeks with a number of retailers beginning early Black Friday deals.

Equities are still poised to register fresh multi-month highs, staging a comprehensive recovery from the year-to-date (YTD) lows, with the headline FTSE 100 index looking resilient breach the mark of 7,500 by the end of this year.

FTSE 100 surpassing the crucial level of 7,500 will further direct the market index to the round-figure mark of 8,000 in the next year, provided the businesses and industries continue to increase efficiency, overcoming the widespread operative challenges of faltering supply chains, dearth of raw materials, semiconductor chips and inadequacy of human capital, especially in the food and accommodation businesses.

The short-staffed situation has significantly deteriorated the businesses’ potential of operating at maximum possible scale even after deploying the highest possible monetary resources as some enterprises are still unable to employ skilled workforce with the vacancies hovering at record high levels.

Recovering from the previous week’s low, FTSE 100 gained 47.78 points, or 0.66% to 7,271.35, after touching an intraday high and low of 7,271.13 and 7,207.81, respectively. On the other hand, the mid-cap indicator FTSE 250 struggled in the negative territory on Monday with the index sliding once again in the terminal deals.

FTSE 250 lost 36.51 points, 0.16% to 23,455.98 after the shares of Hochschild Mining collapsed more than 50% on reports of Peru mines closure. However, the stock recovered partly during the day, but was still trading 31% lower from the previous closing price.

Amid the FTSE 100 components, shares of Antofagasta, Vodafone Group, BHP Group, Royal Mail Group, BT Group, Rio Tinto, Barclays, Anglo American, Associated British Foods, Imperial Brands, British American Tobacco, NatWest Group, Lloyds Banking Group, Glencore, HSBC Holdings, Ferguson, Legal & General Group emerged as the lead gainers with the stocks rising 1-6%.

Whereas, on the other hand, shares of Polymetal International, Darktrace, ITV, Aviva, Sage Group, Prudential and Flutter Entertainment shed 1-5%, partly offsetting the positive points contributed by the aforementioned stocks. Interestingly, shares of AstraZeneca, Reckitt Benckiser and BHP group were only three shares trading in red among the top 20 stocks by market capitalisation.

FTSE 100 (1-year performance)

Source: EODHD/Others

Market Snapshot

Top 3 volume leaders: Lloyds Banking Group, Vodafone Group and BP

Top 3 sectoral indices: Telecommunications, Industrial Metals and Banking

Bottom 3 sectoral indices: Precious Metals, Software and Computing and Electricity Generation and Distribution

Crude oil prices: Brent crude up 1.24% at $79.87/barrel; US WTI crude up 1.17% at $76.86/barrel

Gold prices: An ounce of gold traded at $1,817.05, down 1.88%

Exchange rate: GBP vs USD - 1.3413, down 0.29% | GBP vs EUR - 1.1909, down 0.06%

Bond yields: US 10-Year Treasury yield - 1.599% | UK 10-Year Government Bond yield - 0.9320%

Markets @ 16:30 GMT