The Wall Street sign is pictured at the New York Stock exchange in the Manhattan borough of New York March 9, 2020.The tech-heavy index is 15 per cent higher than its pre-Covid peak in February, while the broad S&P 500 slid from a new all-time high set Wednesday, to below its previous peak also reached six months ago. — Reuters pic
That pessimism was reinforced yesterday by a surprise jump of more than 1 million in new US claims for unemployment assistance, which sent broader stock indices lower. But US tech stocks defied the downbeat mood and extended their upward streak. The Nasdaq surged to a fresh record high, led by gains in Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and Tesla Inc
Oil prices fell about 1 per cent, meanwhile, as concerns mounted about excess crude supplies. The decline came after Reuters reported that some members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, known an Opec+, would need to cut output by an extra 2.31 million barrels per day to make up for recent oversupply.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.22 per cent versus the greenback at 105.89 per dollar, while Sterling was last trading at US$1.3194, up 0.73 per cent on the day.