(New York) The New York Stock Exchange ended an eventful week in the red on Friday, centered around central bank decisions and the spread of the Omicron variant.
The Dow Jones index lost 1.48% to 35,365.44 points. The NASDAQ, with strong technological coloring, in sharp decline at the opening, returned close to equilibrium at -0.07% at 15,169.68 points. The S&P 500 dropped 1.03% to 4620.64 points.
TSX ends the week lower
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed Friday’s session at essentially the same point as the day before, but accumulated a loss for the week as a whole. Toronto’s S & P / TSX Composite Index retreated 0.77 points to end the day with 20,739.01 points.
In the currency market, the Canadian dollar traded at an average rate of 77.85 US cents, down from 78.24 US cents the previous day.
On the New York Commodities Exchange, the price of crude oil fell US $ 1.43 to US $ 70.72 per barrel, while that of natural gas fell 7.6 cents US to $ 3.69 US per million BTUs. The price of gold climbed from US $ 6.70 to US $ 1,804.90 per ounce, and the price of natural gas retreated nearly 1 cent to US $ 4.30 per pound.
Three witches session
Wall Street had a very volatile day which can also be explained by a so-called “three witches” session, because it marks, at the end of each quarter, the expiration of several contracts and options on the indices.
“The volatility is persistent because the markets remain uncertain about the impact of the Omicron variant as a last resort and they also digest the fact that the US Central Bank (Fed) and that of England are heading on the path of limitation. monetary support, ”Schwab analysts commented.
For Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth Management, investors were ultimately drawn to technology stocks “which had been severely attacked in recent sessions.”
“There was a potential for stabilization for the sector, as the portfolio managers looked for good deals to be made,” added the analyst noting that the NASDAQ fell to some 6% of its peak reached one year ago. month.
“It’s a volatile week, not only in terms of price but in view of the amount of information to digest,” noted the analyst.
“On the one hand, the Omicron variant is spreading rapidly in certain regions, such as New York. On the other hand, investors are trying to assess the scenarios that will unfold next year, ”in terms of monetary policy.
On Wednesday, the Monetary Committee of the US Federal Reserve announced to end its asset purchases in March and plans three rate hikes of a quarter of a percentage point in 2022. As for the Bank of England, it has passed. for the act, by tightening its key rate by 0.25%.
All eleven sectors of the S&P concluded in the red, deep enough for the energy sector (-2.35%), as oil prices fell about as much.
Bank stocks, sensitive to a future rise in rates and worried about the possible impact of the Omicron variant on growth, fell 2.27%. New health restrictions against the spread of COVID-19 have reappeared in many European countries.
Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan all lost more than 2%. Goldman Sachs dropped 3.92% to 381.80 dollars and Wells Fargo 4.67% to 47.95 dollars.
Among other stocks, Oracle lost 6.39% to 96.62 dollars, while the software company is in negotiations to acquire Cerner (+ 12.93% to 89.77 dollars), a company specializing in the management and medical IT infrastructure, for $ 30 billion, according to press reports.
The automaker GM was penalized (-5.53% to 55.16 dollars) after the unexpected departure of the head of its subsidiary dedicated to autonomous driving, Cruise.
Rivian, the American pickup, SUV and electric pickup truck maker that just stormed Wall Street, plunged 10.26% to $ 97.70. The company has warned financial analysts that its production this year will be slightly below its targets.
Express carrier Fedex gained 4.95% to $ 250.32 after announcing the day before after the close of better than expected results in the second quarter.
On the bond market, rates remained stable at 1.40% against 1.41% the day before, for 10-year Treasury bills.
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