Last Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, DJIA rallied by 1.05% and rose to 322 points. Similarly, in the S&P 500, SPX rose by 1.06%, increasing by 40%. Nasdaq Composite Comp, rose by 0.90%, gaining 99 points.
There were not many activities yesterday, as the markets were shut to commemorate the Independence Day holiday in the U.S.
Activities today show that the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are down 0.6%, falling to 30,869. S&P is also down 0.7% to 3,802. Nasdaq 100 futures fell to 11,521, after registering 0.6% drop, which clearly signify that the dollar registering a new 20 years high.
What’s Moving the Market?
There are a lot of activities driving the market currently. To start with, slowing global growth, tighter monetary policies, and rising inflation has continued to affect activities in the market. These factors have contributed to the S&P 500 losing nearly 21% of its value in the last six months, its worst half performance since 1970.
Meanwhile, traders have shown reluctance to make new bullish bets, awaiting key market-moving news over the next couple of days, especially with the U.S. jobs report coming out Friday. Another potential news that will drive the market is the U.S. second corporate earnings session, which should kick off next week.
Elsewhere, the Federal Reserve is set to release the minutes from its June rate-setting meeting. This event and the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report billed for Friday should give investors new direction. Investors will also be eagerly looking at the reports for clues on possible Fed rate rises.
There are also indications that the U.S. central bank is going to take a more aggressive approach to its tightening cycle as it continues to look for ways to bolster the dollar, even as the dollar index rose 0.95%, registering a new 20-year high.
Meanwhile, the dollar has continued to overshadow the euro as the region continues to be affected by rising inflation, the energy crisis, and of course, the war in Ukraine.
