(New York) The world stock markets ended without much variation a week during which the slowdown in inflation and the hope of recovery in China boosted prices in most financial markets.
Wall Street concluded in scattered order after the first results of companies. The Dow Jones (+0.33%) was carried by the results of the health insurer UnitedHealth (+7.24%). The S&P 500 lost 0.10% and the NASDAQ 0.18%.
In Europe Paris gained 0.06%, but London (-0.08%), Frankfurt (-0.22%) and Milan (-0.39%) fell. All are nevertheless up sharply over the week, up to 3.69% in Paris, and the pan-European Eurostoxx 600 index took 2.94%, its best performance since the end of March.
In Asia, Hong Kong jumped 5.71% for the week as a whole, due to speculation around new aid from Beijing for the Chinese economy.
Global equities, measured by the MCSI World index, thus experienced their best week since the end of March (+3.27%).
Other signs of investors’ renewed appetite for risk: bitcoin reached its highest level in 13 months on Thursday, while the euro rose sharply against the dollar (stable on Friday at 1.1227 dollars for one euro around 16 a.m. 8 p.m. Eastern Time).
Investors were pleased with the slowdown in inflation as well as lower producer prices in June in the United States, according to indicators published on Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday they learned that import prices had fallen.
“Inflation was already far from its highest levels, but Wednesday’s report was something different,” said Craig Erlam, an analyst at Oanda. “It only remains to be seen whether this trend will continue. »
The main indicator on Friday, consumer confidence remains positively oriented in the United States, at its highest since September 2021.
Markets are hoping inflation data will nudge the US central bank toward more accommodative policy after a final rate hike at the end of July meeting.
But some members of the Fed still called for two increases in the cost of credit by the end of the year.
On the bond market, the slight rise in interest rates on government bonds on Friday did not offset the sharp declines of recent sessions.
First bank results
The American bank JPMorgan Chase (+0.60%), which announced a jump in its quarterly results due in part to the takeover of First Republic, estimated that the American economy was “resilient” while warning that risks still hovered. .
For Citigroup (-4.05%), the quarter was less lenient with a fall in its net profit (-36%).
Goldman Sachs (-0.76%) is leading a group of investors to buy Norwegian educational technology group Kahoot! for 1.5 billion euros. Kahoot!, listed in Oslo, soared 10% to approach the level offered by investors.
Nokia and Ericsson pick up
Swedish telecoms equipment giant Ericsson announced losses for its second quarter on Friday, while its Finnish competitor Nokia lowered its 2023 forecast due to a slowdown in their main market, network construction. 5G.
On the Helsinki Stock Exchange, the Nokia title fell by 9.40%. On the Stockholm Stock Exchange, the Ericsson title fell by 10.67%.
Oil drops gains
Oil prices fell on Friday, as profits were taken at the end of a week that saw prices rise again.
The price of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea for September delivery fell 1.83%, to close at 79.87 dollars.
As for the barrel of American West Texas Intermediate (WTI), with maturity in August, dropped 1.91%, to 75.42 dollars.
The dollar was stabilizing against most major currencies after a week that saw it fall to levels not seen for several months. Around 4:35 p.m. (Eastern time), the greenback was almost unchanged against the single currency, at 1.1227 dollars for one euro.