Market Update & Important Indicators
Stocks rallied on the final trading day of the quarter, putting major benchmarks track to cap a lackluster three months with a strong gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 135 points, or 0.8%, to 16458. The S&P 500 index added 15 points, or 0.8%, to 1872. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 43 points, or 1.0%, to 4199. All 10 major sectors within the S&P 500 were higher, though the gains were led by technology, industrial and health care stocks.
European stock markets ended mixed, with French equities dropping right before the close as the country's prime minister resigned, while a larger-than-expected drop in euro-zone inflation reignited deflation fears and kept investors on edge. The Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.2% to close at 334.31, coming off its intraday high of 335.94. For the quarter, the benchmark ended 1.8% higher, marking the third quarterly advance in a row.
Asian stock markets continued to travel in different directions during the first quarter of this year but did so in unexpected ways; investors soured on China and Japan and returned to the fast-growing economies of Southeast Asia. In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.4% to 22151.06 and the Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.4% to 2033.31.
Base metals on the LME were mixed with aluminium up 1.6% and nickel up 1.2%. Gold lost 0.8% to US$1,284.8/oz and WTI crude sank 0.1% to US$101.58/bbl. The AUD is buying US$0.927.
In This Issue
Argonaut’s Stock Coverage & Recommendations
Recent Contacts & Presentations
Erin Resources (ERI), Tox Free (TOX), Flinders Mines (FMS), BC Iron (BCI), NRW Holdings (NWH), Austin Engineering (ANG), Ausdrill (ASL), High Peak Royalty (TEY), Hot Chili (HCH), Atlas Iron (AGO), Swala Energy (SWE), Sino Gas (SEH), Pura Vida Energy (PVD), Renaissance (RNS), Deep Yellow (DYL), Energy Metals (EME), Toro Energy (TOE), Independence Group (IGO), Orion Gold (ORN), CTI Logistics (CLX), OTOC (OTC)
Upcoming Roadshows, Conferences & Site Visits
APPEA (Oil and Gas Conference), Perth – 6th –9th April
Please read Argonaut's Important Disclaimers & disclosures
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