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Global Wrap:
Stocks End Week With Significant Gains
Current Futures: Dow +155.00, S&P +18.50, NASDAQ +20.50
Stock markets in the United States gained for a fourth day in a row. The gains were led by the conglomerate, capital goods, and energy sectors while the other major sectors were also posting gains. General Electric increased 3.04 percent on the day while Chevron Corp was ahead by 1.73 percent and Exxon Mobil had gained 2.00 percent.
Existing home sales in the United States increased during July to the highest level in nearly two years, reports the National Association of Realtors. The report shows that purchases jumped 7.2 percent to an annual rate of 5.24 million. The increase can be attributed to a record number of foreclosures, lower prices for first time buyers as well as government sponsored tax incentives, and lower costs of borrowing.
Also, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke gave a speech today at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium where he said that the global economy can be seen as emerging from the recession as economic activity levels out after “aggressive” action was undertaken by central banks and governments. The aggressive actions were needed to prevent the collapse of the entire global financial system. Chairman Bernanke did caution that the world still has several critical challenges and that full recovery will take some time.
The Dow Jones Index gained 142.30 points (1.52%) to 9,492.35, while the S&P 500 index added 19.96 points (1.98%) to 1,027.33
Crude oil for August delivery was recently trading at $73.88 per barrel, up by $0.97.
Gold for August delivery was recently trading higher by $13.60 to $955.30.
Treasuries declined shortly after the housing report was released. Yield on the 10-year note rose 12.9 basis points to 3.43%.
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