Market Update & Important Indicators:
Investors scooped up shares of big banks and industrial companies for a second straight day, putting the Dow Jones Industrial Average on course to close at a record. The gains in U.S.-based manufacturing and defence companies, on expectations of greater government spending under president-elect Donald Trump, came at the expense of real-estate firms and utilities, which slid alongside government bond prices. Investors have been betting that fiscal spending and tax cuts under a Trump administration could mean more inflation and push up bond yields. Financials and pharmaceutical companies also led the stock rally, partly on bets that the new administration could loosen regulation. Health-care companies sold off sharply heading into the election. Traders and analysts said a host of factors contributed to the tech's declines, from investors selling prior winners — the tech sector in the S&P 500 was up more than 10% in 2016 as of Wednesday's close — to concerns about the potential for stricter immigration policies.
European stock markets ended a choppy session in negative territory, as a rally for some of the biggest post-election gainers ran out of steam in the afternoon. The Stoxx Europe 600 index ended 0.3% lower at 338.88 after trading as high as 344.30 earlier in the day. The pan-European benchmark had opened sharply higher, continuing a rally from Wednesday that came as investors digested how a Donald Trump presidency will impact the markets in the future. Healthcare and precious metals stocks were initially the biggest winners, but the optimism fizzled late on Thursday and dragged the overall markets lower.
Asian shares rose broadly Thursday, as global investors chose to focus on the upsides of a Donald Trump presidency after a sharp selloff in the region the previous day. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average gained 6.7% Thursday, its biggest single-day gain since Feb. 15, more than making up for Wednesday's 5.4% fall. Korea's Kospi added 2.3% and Singapore's Straits Times Index was higher by 1.5%. Asian equities' strength on Thursday came as stocks on Wall Street notched firm gains overnight, lifted by hopes that Mr. Trump's plan to cut corporate taxes and ease rules regarding the repatriation of firms' overseas cash will boost the U.S. economy. Meanwhile, Japanese stocks surged, with analysts noting that Mr. Trump's possible push on infrastructure spending and other initiatives could benefit local infrastructure companies, as well as industrial-robot and electronic-parts makers.
Australian shares surged Thursday, rebounding as industrial metals jumped and bond prices dropped in the wake of Donald Trump's surprise victory. Strong gains by resources and bank stocks drove a broad advance, with only stocks recently sought in recent days for their defensive qualities being pulled lower, as markets shifted from worries about economic damage to the potential for reform under a Republican presidency. In its sharpest one-day rally in years, the S&P/ASX 200 finished at the session high with a gain of 172.2 points, or 3.3%, at 5328.8. That reversed Wednesday's sharp drop, when it became clear Mr. Trump was leading in the vote count, as well as last week's anxious selling. An expectation of fiscal stimulus and heightened demand for industrial metals helped drive an array of commodity prices. Copper rose to a fresh one-year high on Wednesday, while iron ore jumped 4.7% to its highest level since the start of last year.
The London Metal Exchange's three-month copper contract closed up 3.4% at $5,601/t on Thursday. Aluminium closed up 1.1% at $1,773/t, zinc closed up 2.3% at $2532/t, tin rose 2.6% to $21,905/t and lead rose 1.2% to $2,155/t and nickel was up 1.5% at $11,710/t.
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Swick Mining Services Ltd (SWK), Davenport Resources Ltd (DAV), Orthocell Ltd (OCC), BC Iron Limited (BCI), ALT Resources Ltd (ARS), Gascoyne Resources Ltd (GCY), Dacian Gold (DCN), Orocobre Ltd (ORE), Alchemy Resources Ltd (ALY), Acacia Coal Ltd (AJC), Minotaur Exploration Ltd (MEP), Northern Minerals Ltd (NTU), Walkabout Resources Ltd (WKT), Antipa Minerals Ltd (AZY), Noxopharm Limited (NOX), Botanix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BOT), Emerald Resources NL (EMR), Metals of Africa Ltd (MTA), Stavely Minerals Ltd (SVY), Australis Oil & Gas Ltd (ATS), Davenport Resources Ltd (DAV), TFS Corporation Limited (TFC), Emmerson Resources Ltd (ERM)
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