Crude And Gold Trade Higher; Major Asia Indexes And Europe Rise - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Thursday, April 25th, the U.S. stock markets closed lower, impacted by surprising data indicating sluggish U.S. economic expansion and ongoing inflation. This downturn was exacerbated by a broad sell-off in major stocks following underwhelming earnings from Meta Platforms META.

Related: Meta’s Q1 Earnings: Most Analysts Support AI Strategy, While One Says ‘Use Meta As A Source Of Funds,’ Questions Its Long-Term Value

The U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.6% in the first quarter, slowing from 3.4% in the previous quarter and falling short of the expected 2.5% growth. 

The core personal consumption expenditures price index rose 3.7% annually, up from 2% in the previous quarter.

Communications stocks, notably affected by Meta, led losses in the S&P 500, with healthcare, real estate, financials, consumer staples, and consumer discretionary sectors also falling.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.98% to close at 38,085.80. The S&P 500 was down 0.46%, ending the day at 5,048.42, and the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.64%, finishing the session at 15,611.76.

Asia Markets Today

• On Friday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed higher by 0.84% at 37,943.50, led by gains in the Precision Instruments, Transportation Equipment, and Electrical/Machinery sectors.
• In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index closed the session lower by 1.39% at 7,575.90, led by losses in the Industrials, A-REITs, and Telecoms Services sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 declined 0.67% to close at 22,419.95, and the Nifty 500 slipped 0.14%, closing at 20,839.35.
• China’s Shanghai Composite gained 1.17% to end the session at 3,088.64, and the Shenzhen CSI 300 rose 1.53%, closing at 3,584.27.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 2.12%, concluding the day at 17,651.15.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index was up 0.69%.
• Germany’s DAX gained 0.72%.
• France’s CAC climbed 0.27%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.41%.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 0.44% at $83.92/bbl, and Brent was up 0.43% at $89.39 bbl.
• Natural Gas declined 1.21% to $1.962.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.73% at $2,359.60, Silver gained 1.18% to $27.675, while Copper was up 1.41% at $4.5815.

US Futures at 06:15 AM ET            

Dow futures were up 0.12%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.65%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.92%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.05% to 105.65, USD/JPY was up 0.73% to 156.79, and USD/AUD slipped 0.23% to 1.5305.

Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock