Markets surge on surprise US jobs | Calamatta Cuschieri

US markets ended the week sharply higher on Friday after the U.S. May jobs report showed a surprise 2.5 million jump in employment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot up 829.16 points, or 3.2 percent, to 27,110.98, with the S&P 500 surging 81.58 points, or 2.6 percent, to 3,193.93. The Nasdaq Composite surged 198.27 points, or 2.1 percent, to 9,814.08, just 3.1 points shy of a new record close.

European markets also surged higher from the US jobs report, racking up their best week in two months. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index climbed 2.5 percent, boosted by a 7.6 percent rally in financial stocks. France’s CAC 40 surged nearly 3 percent while the German DAX added 2.6 percent, setting its weekly gain to over 10 percent. The UK’s FTSE 100 rose 1.7 percent.

Maltese stocks meanwhile inched lower, with the MSE Equity Total Return Index slipping 0.102 percent to 8,331.35 points as sharp gains by Malta Properties Company Plc and Plaza Centres were offset by losses in Midi Plc and Malta International Airport Plc. Malta Properties Company Plc posted the largest gain with shares up 14.81 percent at €0.62, while Midi Plc recorded a 5 percent drop to €0.38.

Oil climbs on OPEC+ cuts

OPEC, Russia and the group’s allies agreed on Saturday to extend record oil production cuts until the end of July, prolonging a deal that has helped crude prices double in the past two months. Withdrawing almost 10% of global supplies from the market has helped the benchmark Brent crude climb to a three-month high on Friday above $42 a barrel.

OPEC+ had initially agreed in April that it would cut supply by 9.7 million barrels per day during May-June to prop up prices that collapsed due to the coronavirus crisis. Those cuts were due to taper to 7.7 million barrels per day from July to December. The April deal was reached under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who wants to avoid U.S. oil industry bankruptcies.

Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s de facto leader, and Russia have to perform a balancing act of pushing up oil prices to meet their budget needs while not driving them much above $50 a barrel to avoid encouraging a resurgence of rival U.S. shale production.
 

This article was issued by Peter Petrov, Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com.mt. The information, view and opinions provided in this article are being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.