Sharp rise on Wall Street buoys emerging stocks
The rand gained 0.2% against the dollar as the three major US indices closed higher
Emerging markets stock rose on Thursday as positive sentiment from Wall Street’s spectacular rise overnight spilled over, but gains were tempered by China stocks marking their lowest close in four years. The three major indices on Wall Street closed between 4.96% and 5.84% higher on Wednesday after a report that holiday sales were the strongest in years allayed some concerns about the health of the economy. Taking cues, most emerging stock markets rose, with Taiwan shares leading gains in Asia with a 1.7% rise, while indexes in Russia and Turkey rose 1% on average. Some relief also came as a top White House Council of Economic Advisers said US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s job was not in jeopardy. His comments came after President Donald Trump described the Fed as the “only problem” in the US economy. “The market is somewhat upbeat to hear Jerome Powell will not be relieved of his duties, as that would have been a deep negative,” said Chris Weston, Melbourne-based head of re...
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