US close: Markets rally as Macron takes pole position

By Sharecast News

Sharecast News | 24 Apr, 2017

US equity markets were in the green on Monday over investor relief on centrist Emmanuel Macron winning the first round in the French presidential election and on hopes of possible tax reform.

European stocks had rallied after Macron first round victory and the optimism followed to Wall Street on Monday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.05% to 20,763.89, the S&P 500 was up 1.08% to 2,374.15 and the Nasdaq 100 rose 1.21% to 5,508.03.

Investors were hopeful that europhile Macron will beat off far-right nationalist and eurosceptic Marine Le Pen in the run-off in the french presidential election on 7 May.

With 97.43% of votes counted earlier, Macron had 23.86% to Le Pen's 21.43%.

Previous market jitters of far-left Jean-Luc Mélenchon possibly going through to the second round proved unfounded as he was left in fourth place, with scandal hit Conservative François Fillon in third place and Socialist Benoît Hamon in fifth.

Market participants had feared that two eurosceptics would have been in the final round, raising concerns of a possible ‘Frexit’ referendum held in France.

Jasper Lawler, senior market analyst, at London Capital Group, said: “Macron as President is not a done deal yet with the final result not known until 5 May, but the way markets are reacting, it may as well be.

“There is some justification for the overconfidence in a Macron presidency.”

Back in Washington, US president Donald Trump’s weekend tweet that he will announce a “massive” tax reform package this Wednesday may have got lost amid a wider focus on the French election.

“There were fears that the recent knockback on healthcare reforms may have stopped Trump in his tracks, yet this week’s announcement will put the bulls in the driving seat even when the French feel-good factor has faded,” Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG, said.

In corporate news, Akari Therapeutics tumbled 14.68% despite the biopharmaceutical positing positive results for its drug that treats rare blood disease in a mid-stage clinical trial.

Hasbro gained 5.9% after the toymaker topped analysts’ forecasts as gaming revenue for the first quarter rose.

Halliburton lost 0.83% after the oilfield service company beat profit and earnings estimates thanks to a rise on drilling activity.

On the data front, the Chicago Fed national activity index fell to 0.08 in March following a 0.27 gain in February, which was revised down from 0.34.

A reading below zero of eth 85 indicators is below trend growth.

The three-month moving average was down to 0.03 from a revised 0.16 previously.

Dow Jones - Risers

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $87.50 3.53%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $223.22 2.93%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $96.81 2.64%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $67.53 1.70%
3M Co. (MMM) $194.23 1.43%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $33.28 1.40%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $151.89 1.26%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $120.57 1.23%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $36.75 1.18%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $116.32 1.16%