US markets closed higher for third straight week

05 Mar 2016 Evaluate

The US markets closed higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at two-month highs, while posting their third consecutive weekly rise, fueled by an oil-induced rally in the energy and materials sectors. On the economy front, the US generated 242,000 new jobs in February, snapping back after a modest slowdown in hiring in the first month of 2016. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.9%. Employment gains for January and December, meanwhile, were revised upward by a combined 30,000. The government stated that 172,000 new jobs were created in January instead of the previously reported 151,000. December’s gain was raised to 271,000 from 262,000. Yet despite the big gain in new jobs, the average hourly wage fell 3 cents, or 0.1%, to $25.35. Hourly pay rose a mild 2.2% from February 2015 to February 2016. And the amount of time people worked each week dropped two-tenths of an hour to 34.4 hours, the lowest level in two years. The labor-force participation rate moved up to 62.9%, the highest level since May, as more than half a million people joined the labor force.

On the other hand, US exports fell in January for the fourth month in a row and hit the lowest level since mid-2011, acting as a weight on the economy that’s unlikely to fade soon. The latest drop in exports contributed to a 2.2% increase in the nation’s trade deficit. The US trade gap rose to a seasonally adjusted $45.7 billion in January from a revised $44.7 billion a month earlier. US exports slid 2.1% to $176.5 billion. Exports have tumbled over the past year, which has helped depress US growth. American firms can’t sell as many goods and services overseas because of a stronger dollar and weak global economy. Imports also fell 1.3% to $222.1 billion, which was the smallest amount since April 2011. The trade deficit averaged $44.6 billion from November through January, up from $43.1 billion in the same three-month period a year ago.

Meanwhile, Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan called for the US central bank to be patient when it comes to raising interest rates, citing the effect of tighter financial conditions on US economic growth. Global factors like the drop in stock markets, the decline in the price of oil, and the rise in the dollar since the beginning of the year are acting like a brake on the US economic recovery, similar to the effect of an interest-rate increase. Kaplan added that he expects the US economy to be resilient this year, with consumer spending buoyed by lower gas prices, among other factors. He forecast about 1.9 percent US GDP growth for this year, enough to push down the unemployment rate, now at 4.9 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 62.87 points or 0.37 percent to 17,006.77, the Nasdaq was up 9.60 points or 0.20 percent to 4,717.02 while, the S&P 500 gained 6.59 points or 0.33 percent to 1,999.99.

The Indian ADRs closed mostly in green; Dr. Reddy’s Lab was up 1.27%, HDFC Bank was up 0.54%, Infosys was up 0.26% and Tata Motors was up 0.05%. On the other hand, ICICI Bank was down by 0.11%.

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