S&P 500 Index
US stocks extended previous gains on Monday amid absence of major fundamentals. Hopes for easing from the ECB and BoJ bolstered US equities. Meanwhile, larger than expected increase in the US non-farms payrolls continued to lend support for US stocks. S&P 500 closed 0.23% higher at 1,394.23 on Monday. Technology and base metals were the strongest industries in the index. Alcoa and Cliffs Natural Resources added 1.55% and 2.73%. Meanwhile, Cognizant Technology Solutions soared 10.27% as the company’s Q2 results were stronger than Wall Street’s forecast. On the downside was Tyson Foods that declined by 7.99% after reporting a 61% drop in net income in Q2. The Interpublic Group of Companies lost 7.84% after its competitor, Publics Group of France, announced it was going to place a bid to buy the media company.
Dow Jones Industrial Average Index
Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.16% to end Monday session at 13,117.51. Mixed data from the US job market on Friday as well as speculation that the ECB will restart its bond-purchasing program pushed US blue chips higher. Seven out of nine sectors included in the index posted gains. Base materials and telecommunications were the strongest sectors in the index. Alcoa and El du Pont de Nemours climbed 1.55% and 1.39% while AT&T and Verizon Communications rose 0.08% and 0.52%. At the same time, two sectors, consumer services and financials, retreated. Among financials, American Express declined by 0.89% while the Bank of America surged 2.83%. Health care sector was mixed, with Pfizer losing 0.08% and Merck and Co climbing 0.58%.
Nikkei 225 Index
Japanese stocks rallied on Tuesday on speculation that central banks around the world will provide additional monetary stimulus to boost economy. Investors also continued to await an outcome of the Bank of Japan’s meeting due on Thursday. Nikkei 225 soared by 0.88% to 8,803.31. All sectors included in Nikkei 225 advanced. The strongest gains posted utilities and oil and gas companies. Chubu Electric Power and Kansai Electric Power rose 9.15% and 10.43%. Meanwhile, Inpex and JX Holdings climbed 2.24% and 1.83%. Maruha Nichiro Holdings surged 8.17%, approaching three-month high. The seafood producer announced it plans to buy back 3.3% of its shares. At the same time, the top-loser was Tokai Carbon, which sank 18.13% after the company reduced its full-year earnings forecast.
Hang Seng Index
Shares in Hong Kong closed on Tuesday on the positive note on hopes for easing in the EU and Japan. On Monday, Germany backed up bond-buying program suggested by the ECB. However, weak earnings reports for Q2 restricted gains of Chinese equities. Hang Seng Index moved 0.37% higher to close at 20,072.55. Seven out of nine industries in the index rose. The strongest gains posted consumer services and oil and gas companies. Sands China climbed 4.45% while CNOOC and PetroChina advanced by 1.28% and 0.63%. Meanwhile, Esprit Holdings was the top-gainer, rallying almost 28%. The retailing company appointed a new CEO, Jose Manuel Martinez Gutiérrez. On the downside were two sectors: utilities and telecommunications. China Resources Power and COSCO Pacific declined 6.95% and 0.37%.
FTSE 100 Index
UK stocks were flat on Tuesday as a sharp fall of Standard Chattered was offset by stronger than expected earnings of other companies. Moreover, an increase in the UK retail sales in July provided support for UK equities. FTSE 100 eased down 0.06% to trade at 5,805.46 at the time of writing. On the upside were basic materials and oil and gas companies. Xstrata gained 2.03% after reporting better than expected earnings for Q2. Meanwhile, Tullow Oil and BP rose 0.13% and 2.23%. At the same time, financial and industrial equities moved down. Standard Chattered dragged banks lower. The company plunged 23.47% after it was accused of violating US money laundering laws in relation to its business with Iran’s banks. Standard Chartered may be forced to suspend its operations. After the news, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group slid 0.68% and 0.48%.
DAX Index
German equities advanced on Tuesday despite disappointing factory orders data. German factory orders plunged 1.7% in June, confronting expectations of a 0.8% decrease. Adding pressure on European stocks, Italy reported that its GDP contracted by 0.7% in Q2. German DAX Index rose 0.5% to trade at 6,952.46 at the time of writing. Eight out of nine sectors moved higher. The strongest industries were utilities and telecommunications. E.ON and RWE surged 1.99% and 1.48% while Deutsche Telekom added 0.96%. RWE jumped after the energy provider announced that it has increased Polish wind energy portfolio. Meanwhile, financial shares were mixed, with Deutsche Bank falling 0.67% and Allianz climbing 0.52%. On Friday, Allianz reported a 23% increase in net income for Q2.
EXPLANATIONS
Indexes
Standard & Poor's 500 Index (S&P 500) or (SPX) - U.S. stock market index consisting of the 500 large-cap shares widely traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ.
Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (INDU) - U.S. stock market index consisting of the 30 large publicly owned U.S. companies , primarily industrials
Hang Seng Index (HI) - Hong Kong’s stock market index consisting of 48 largest companies listed on the Hong Kong Exchange
Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average (Nikkei 225 Index) or (NKY) - Japanese stock market index consisting of the 225 largest companies listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange
FTSE 100 Index (UKX) - U.K. stock market index consisting of the 100 most capitalized U.K. companies trading on the London Stock Exchange
DAX Index (DAX) - German stock market index consisting of the 30 largest and most liquid German companies trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange
Chart
SMA (20) - Simple Moving Average of 20 periods;
SMA (60) - Simple Moving Average of 60 periods.
Correlation - a statistical measure of the linear relationship of two random variables. It is defined as the covariance divided by the standard deviation of two variables.
Indicators
Industry performance - daily performance of industries within the particular stock market index
Top performers - companies within the particular stock market index that showed best or worst daily performance
Performance - relative historical change of stock market index value
