The American stock markets posted gains on Thursday. At the close of trading in New York, the Dow stood at 51,565 points, marking a 0.1 percent increase compared to the previous day. Minutes earlier, the broader S&P 500 saw a 1.1 percent rise, closing near 7,501 points, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 climbed 2.5 percent, reaching approximately 30,406 points.
Investor confidence was bolstered by the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, although the return to normal shipping traffic in the area could still take several months. Macroeconomic outlooks remain sober regarding the influence of the Iran conflict on key interest rates. Members of the Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee currently find Donald Trump’s hoped-for interest rate cut unlikely, anticipating a rate hike instead.
In currency markets, the European common currency weakened on Thursday evening. The Euro traded at $1.1461 against the US Dollar, meaning one dollar bought 0.8725 Euros.
Commodity prices saw mixed results. The price of gold declined, with a fine ounce trading at $4,217 (a decrease of 1.0 percent) by the evening. This equated to €118.29 per gram. Oil prices, however, managed to rise. A barrel of North Sea Brent crude cost $79.72 around 10 PM German time, which represented an increase of 0.2 percent, or 17 cents, over the previous trading day’s close.
