Asia Market Mixed, Europe Rises, Gold Hits New High At $2,350 - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Friday, April 5th, the U.S. stock markets ended higher, lifted by a strong jobs report highlighting the economy’s robust health and suggested the Federal Reserve may hold off on reducing interest rates.

According to economic data from March, U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose to 303,000 from 270,000 in February, beating the forecast of 212,000, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The unemployment rate fell slightly to 3.8% from 3.9%.

All major sectors of the S&P 500 saw gains, with the highest increases observed in communication services, industrials, and technology sectors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.80% to close at 38,904.04. The S&P 500 was up 1.11%, ending the day at 5,204.34, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.24%, finishing the session at 16,248.52.

Asian Markets Today

• On Monday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index concluded the trading day up by 0.78% at 39,314.50, led by gains in the Steel, Railway & Bus and Textile sectors.
• In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.20% and closed at 7,789.10, led by gains in the Gold, IT, and Utilities sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 closed higher by 0.68% at 22,666.30, and the Nifty 500 rose 0.50% to 20,819.10.
• China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.72% to 3,047.05, and the Shenzhen CSI 300 was down 0.88%, closing at 3,536.41. 
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 0.05%, concluding the day at 16,732.85.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index was up 0.13%.
• Germany’s DAX gained 0.59%.
• France’s CAC rose 0.53%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 traded higher by 0.10%.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 0.87% at $86.14/bbl, and Brent was down 0.89% at $90.37/bbl.
• Natural Gas was up 0.17% at $1.788.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.51% at $2,357.90, Silver declined 1.56% to $27.935, while Copper was up 0.87% at $4.2730.

US Futures at 06:15 AM ET       

Dow futures were down 0.10%, S&P 500 futures declined 0.14%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures slid 0.10%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.07% to 104.38, USD/JPY was up 0.15% to 151.84, and USD/AUD slipped 0.20% to 1.5178.

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