Markets climb higher | Calamatta Cuschieri

Wall Street’s main indexes rose to all-time highs on Friday as data showing the slowest U.S. jobs growth in six months raised investors’ expectations for a new fiscal relief bill to help revive the coronavirus-hit economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 248.74 points, or 0.83%, to 30,218.26, the S&P 500 gained 32.40 points, or 0.88%, to 3,699.12 and the Nasdaq Composite added 87.05 points, or 0.7%, to 12,464.23.

Oil stocks lifted European shares on Friday, with London’s blue-chip index hitting nine-month highs, while disappointing jobs growth in the United States strengthened hopes for a fiscal stimulus. The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.6%, helping it edge into positive territory for the week for - its fifth straight week in the black. London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.9% as crude prices gained after a compromise between OPEC+ members to continue to increase output slightly from January but continue the bulk of existing supply curbs.

Maltese markets however sank lower, with the MSE Equity Total Return Index closing down 0.88 percent at 8,139.273 points. Bank of Valletta Plc weighed on the index with shares falling 6.98 percent to €1.00. Mapfre Middlesea Plc meanwhile led the gains with shares up 2.09 percent at €1.95.

Airbnb’s initial public offering

Airbnb Inc has plans to raise the target price range for its initial public offering (IPO) to between $56 and $60 per share, underscoring demand for new U.S. stocks, a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The U.S. home rental firm had on Tuesday set a price range for its IPO to sell shares at $44 and $50 apiece.

Airbnb could communicate the upwardly revised price range to investors in a public filing on Monday, the source added, requesting anonymity as the plans are private. At the upper end of the new range, Airbnb would sell $3.1 billion in stock and have a fully diluted valuation, which includes securities such as options and restricted stock units, of $41.8 billion. Airbnb’s stock market debut, slated for Dec. 10 on Nasdaq, will be one of the largest and most anticipated U.S. IPOs of 2020, which has already been a bumper year for flotations.

Source: Reuters

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