Major US stock indexes rose on Wednesday, boosted by optimism amid signs of progress in peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, and ahead of an expected interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones 500 index, or 1.5%, rose to 34,062.93 points, while the Standard & Poor’s index rose about 80 points, or 1.8%, to 4,347.14 points.
The Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 360 points, or 2.72%, to 13,303.37 points.
Prospects for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, Chinese stimulus and an impending rise in US interest rates lifted stocks and US Treasury yields on Wednesday.
Treasury yields
US 10-year Treasury yields rose to 2.204% on expectations of a Fed rate hike, their highest since June 2019. The five-year yield rose to 2.149%, the highest since May 2019.
The German 10-year government bond yield rose to its highest level since November 2018 at 0.403%.
Investors are expecting the US Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by at least 25 basis points, and traders will also be watching closely for details of how it plans to end its bond-buying program.
Data, on Wednesday, showed that retail sales in the United States rose 0.3% in February; As rising gasoline and food prices forced households to cut spending on other goods, which could constrain economic growth this quarter.
European stocks
European shares ended higher on Wednesday amid renewed optimism about progress in talks between Russia and Ukraine, and with global markets awaiting the latest monetary policy numbers and economic outlook from the US Federal Reserve.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended temporarily around 3%, with major bourses and almost all sectors in positive territory. Technology stocks rose more than 6.5% to lead the gains, while utilities bucked the trend, dropping 0.8%.
Japanese stocks
As for Japanese stocks, the Nikkei index rose 1.64%, and the Topix index rose 1.46%.
The US dollar fell 0.29% against a basket of other currencies; It traded at 98.647, and settled against the yen at 118.32, albeit close to a five-year high in the previous session.
Spot gold also rose 0.16% to $1,920.38 an ounce.
(Archyde.com)