At the close of the trading session on Wednesday, the US stock exchanges reported strong growth in the oil and gas, raw materials, and financial sectors. The focus of market participants was on the positive start of the quarterly reporting season of American companies.
Thus, the S&P 500 stock index gained 0.8%, and a day earlier it showed the maximum daily growth since the end of March this year. The Dow Jones is up by 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite is up by 0.9%.
Meanwhile, on the NYSE New York Stock Exchange, the number of securities that increased in price (2398) exceeded the number of those that sank (780), and the quotes of 110 securities remained unchanged. On the NASDAQ stock exchange, the share price of 2759 companies significantly increased, 739 - fell, and 117 - remained unchanged.
The quotes of the securities of the Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. restaurant chain showed a historical maximum against the background of sales that exceeded the pre-crisis level, and soared by 11.54% to 1756.07. The shares of the American advertising company Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. broke through another maximum, gaining 11.35% and closing at 34.82. The quotes of Aehr Test Systems, which is engaged in the development, production and sale of test products for the semiconductor industry, also rose to a maximum, increasing by 37.33% to 8,020.
Coca-Cola securities increased by 1.4%, following the statement of the company's management that the expected growth in earnings per share this year should exceed all forecasts of experts. The revenue of the American holding company Johnson & Johnson's in the second quarter soared by 27%, and shares rose by 0.4%. The securities of the motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson lost 7%, despite the quarterly profit report.
The CBOE Volatility Index, formed on the basis of options trading indicators on the S&P 500, sank by 9.22% to the level of 17.91.
The yield on 10-year US government bonds increased from 1.208% to 1.293% on Wednesday. In recent weeks, this indicator has shown a negative trend against the background of a decrease in concerns about a long-term increase in inflation above the target level.
The regional indicator Stoxx Europe 600 increased by 1.6%. The leaders in the index were the shares of tourism and leisure companies. The Japanese stock exchange indicator Nikkei 225 increased by 0.6%, while the Chinese Shanghai Composite rose by 0.7%.
The positive situation on the US stock markets in recent days is closely related to the reporting season period. So, on Tuesday, it became known that the final results of 85% of companies that published their quarterly results exceeded analysts' forecasts.
For the stock markets, which have recently been full of fears, this has become a real salvation. It is safe to say that today, the US stock markets have achieved some stability. However, it will certainly take a long time to return to a more relaxed atmosphere. Experts hope that in the near future, the yield of treasury bonds will increase to the March highs, and market participants will again start investing in securities of companies that are growing along with the economy.
At the same time, many investors are still seriously concerned about the economic consequences of the new "delta" variant of COVID-19, and expect market excitement on the eve of the peak of the summer holidays. Looking at the difficult epidemiological situation in the UK, it is not easy to believe that a similar story will not be repeated in the United States and Europe.
QUICK LINKS