FTSE 100 rises
Britain’s FTSE 100 edged higher at open on Friday, propped by financial stocks following Standard Chartered’s results, though the index was on course for marginal losses in the week as markets digested a raft of mixed earnings updates.
The FTSE 100 index rose 0.2 percent, as of 0820 GMT. Standard Chartered PLC jumped 6.4 percent to the top of FTSE 100 after the Asia-focused bank rewarded shareholders with dividends and a fresh $1 billion buyback as annual profit rose 18 percent. The stock powered a 1 percent rise in British lenders.
The Blue Chip Share Index is still on course for a marginal weekly loss on the back of a mixed bag of earnings in the region, with receding bets on early interest rate cuts from global central banks also pouring cold water on market optimism baked in towards the end of last year.
European markets ahead at open
Europe’s major stock markets crept higher Friday as investors paused at the end of a record-breaking week for global equities.
London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index increased 0.3 percent to 7,704.49 points.
In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 index rose 0.1 percent to 7,919.77 points and Frankfurt’s DAX was marginally higher at 17,375.03.
Asian Shares also climbed Friday following a day of record highs in Japanese, US and European markets after demand for AI-powering chips drove tech gains.
Positivity continues at PSX
Bullish momentum was witnessed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that it remains keen to work with the new government, pushing the benchmark KSE-100 Index to gain over 300 points during trading on Friday.
At 12pm, the benchmark index was hovering at 62,216.11 level, an increase of 301.77 points or 0.49 percent.
Index-heavy sectors including OGDC, PPL and SNGPL were trading in the green.
The Improvement in sentiment comes after the IMF said it looks forward “to working with the new government” of Pakistan.
In a press briefing on Friday, Julie Kozack stated: “During the period of the caretaker government, the authorities have maintained economic stability.
China stocks set to snap 8-session winning streak
China Stocks slipped on Friday, on course to snap an eight-session winning streak, as some investors booked profits after recent gains and awaited further policy guidance and economic indicators to gauge if the market rally could sustain.
Hong Kong shares open lower
Hong Kong Stocks opened lower on Friday, a day after Japanese, US and European markets saw surging tech gains driven by demand for AI-powering chips.
The Hang Seng Index opened down 0.5 percent, or 88.27 points, to 16,654.68.
The Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.2 percent, or 4.55 points, at 2,992.91, and the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange added 0.4 percent, or 5.85 points, to 1,655.95.
Australian shares track global peers higher
Australian Shares rose on Friday, tracking a broader rally in global peers, while strong performances in domestic technology stocks and financials helped offset losses in commodities.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.5 percent to 7,650.30 by 2355 GMT. The benchmark ended flat on Thursday.
AI Chipmaker Nvidia’s stunning results sparked a worldwide wave of record highs in equity markets in the previous session.
Australian technology stocks tracked Wall Street peers higher to jump as much as 2.7 percent, touching their highest level since Jan. 6, 2022.
The sub-index was also on track to record a fourth weekly gain, if trend holds.
India’s Nifty 50 set to hit record high at open
India’s Blue-Chip Index Nifty 50 is set to hit a record high for the fifth straight session on Friday, moving in tandem with a global technology stocks-led rally that was triggered by AI-bellwether Nvidia’s stellar earnings.
India’s GIFT Nifty was trading at 22,312.50 as of 8:13 a.m. IST, indicating that the NSE Nifty 50 will open above its Thursday’s record close of 22,217.45.
The Nifty has hit all-time peaks in each of the four sessions this week and gained about 0.8 percent over the period, aided by financials and consumer stocks.
Most stock markets in Gulf end lower
Most Stock Markets in the Gulf ended lower on Thursday a day after minutes from the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting bolstered the view that interest rate cuts will now be slower in coming than previously expected.
The Bulk of policymakers at the Federal Reserve’s last meeting were concerned about the risks of cutting interest rates too soon, with broad uncertainty about how long borrowing costs should remain at their current level, according to the minutes of the Jan. 30-31 session.
Dubai’s main share index fell 0.6 percent, extending losses from the previous session when it snapped a nine-day winning streak, hit by a 1.5 percent fall in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties.
A Slim majority of economists polled by Reuters now expects the Fed to start cutting rates in June, farther out than market expectations last month of a first cut in March.
Sri Lankan shares end higher
Sri Lankan shares closed higher on Thursday, aided by gains in industrial stocks.
The CSE All Share index settled up 0.06 percent at 10,655.35.
Expolanka Holdings Plc and LOLC Finance Plc were the top gainers on the CSE All Share, rising 6.09 percent and 2.50 percent, respectively.
Trading volume on the CSE All Share index fell to 31million shares from 35.6 million shares in the previous session. The equity market’s turnover rose to 1.47 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($4.73 million) from 880.9 million rupees in the previous session, according to exchange data.
Foreign investors were net buyers, purchasing stocks worth 467.9 million rupees, while domestic investors were net sellers, offloading shares worth 1.21 billion rupees, the data showed.