Wall Street ends another positive week in disorganized order

The New York Stock Exchange concluded an eighth positive week in a row on Friday – the longest period in the green since 2017 for the S&P 500 -, the market being supported by the confirmed decline in American inflation.

The Dow Jones index lost 0.05% to 37,385.97 points, the Nasdaq, with its strong technological coloring, advanced 0.19% to 14,992.97 points and the broader S&P 500 index gained 0.17%. at 4,754.63 points.

Several indicators have confirmed the scenario of a “Goldilocks economy”, where inflation manages to be controlled without endangering growth.

Thus the progression of the PCE inflation index in the United States, the favorite measure of the American central bank (Fed) to assess the rise in prices, fell sharply to 2.6% over one year in November.

The increase in the underlying index, excluding energy and food, is still above 3% but it has slowed more than expected to 3.2% year-on-year compared to 3.4% the previous month. And over one month, it increased by 0.1%, as expected.

“There has been some good news on the inflation side, showing that it is heading in the right direction,” commented Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital.

Due to the lack of trading volume on Friday, while Wall Street will remain closed on Monday due to Christmas Day, the analyst believes that “the full effect of this news on inflation will undoubtedly manifest itself on Tuesday” in the indices.

Among the other economic data of the day, household income increased by 0.4% over the month in November but their expenditure grew less quickly at +0.2%.

Furthermore, orders for durable goods rebounded strongly (+5.4%), much more than expected in November, thanks in particular to new aircraft orders.

Finally, American consumer confidence, measured by the Conference Board, improved more than expected in December, with households showing more optimism about the health of the economy and employment. The index measuring this confidence climbed to 110.7 points, more than expected, against 101.0 in November.

On the market, Nike fell 11.83% to 108 dollars after the sports equipment manufacturer warned that its sales for the 2024 fiscal year ending in May would be weaker than expected, increasing by only 1%.

The brand’s executives highlighted “risks” in the economy, including “a stronger dollar” and “consumer demand for the holiday season.”

By contagion, the footwear brand Foot Locker lost 3.93%.

The American pharmaceutical group Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) climbed 2.03% to $52.30 after announcing that it was strengthening its position in psychiatric illnesses with the purchase of the biotech Karuna Therapeutics, also an American company, for $14 billion.

With this operation, BMS intends to get its hands on a molecule in development from Karuna which could treat schizophrenia, but also potentially Alzheimer’s disease.

BMS intends to acquire all of Karuna’s outstanding shares for $330 per share, Karuna’s shares soared 47.71% to $317.85.

Space sector services company Rocket Lab took off 22.80% after winning a $515 million contract with the government to build space vehicles.

The cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase gained 4.43%.

On the bond market, the ten-year yield was almost stable at 3.89%.