U.S. stock markets finished higher on Friday. By the closing bell in New York, the Dow finished at 54,037 points, marking an increase of 0.3 percent compared to the previous trading day. Just minutes earlier, the broader S&P 500 registered a gain of 0.6 percent, reaching approximately 7,758 points, while the technology-focused Nasdaq 100 was up 1.2 percent at around 29,722 points.
In related political developments, President Donald Trump attempted to push past previous judicial limits on his actions on Friday in two specific areas: the right to citizenship and the independence of the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve. Market participants view the issue of central bank independence as critical, fearing that political interference could lead to excessive inflation. Nevertheless, Trump maintained his plan to remove Lisa Cook, the first African American member of the Federal Reserve Board, a decision he stated in a letter on Friday. Cook’s attorney has argued that the allegations made by Trump against the central banker are unfounded.
Regarding other financial indicators, the European currency strengthened by Friday evening. The euro was trading at 1.1563 U.S. dollars, meaning the dollar could be purchased for 0.8648 euros.
The price of gold saw significant gains, reaching $4,342 per fine ounce by the evening, an increase of 2.4 percent. This translates to a price of 120.72 euros per gram. In contrast, the oil price declined. Around 10 PM Central European Time on Friday, a barrel of Brent crude from the North Sea was trading at $82.05, which was 0.5 percent-or 44 cents-less than the closing price of the previous day.
