(MENAFN– ecpulse)
Even with tensions in Gaza and Ukraine, U.S. stocks surged on Friday and ended the week with healthy gains as investors shrugged-off worries that geopolitical events will drag down global growth.
Benchmark indices on Wall Street rebounded strongly after Thursday’s sharp sell-off.
-The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.73% or 123.37 points to 17100.18 and ended the week 0.92 % higher.
-The S&P 500 gained 1.03% or 20.10 points to 1978.22 and ended the week 0.54 % higher, and is now up 7% for the year.
The week`s back-to-back swings were the first sharp moves in months for U.S. stock benchmarks. Before Thursday, the S&P 500 had gone 62 sessions without a move of more than 1%.
-The NASDAQ Composite Index gained 1.57% or 68.70 points to 4432.15 and ended the week 0.38 % higher.
Thursday`s selling started after news broke of downed Malaysian passenger flight 17 over an area of Ukraine controlled by pro-Russian rebels. Market tensions stabilized after the event, but were then worsened after Israel sent ground troops into Gaza.
In another sign that the flurry of geopolitical concerns are cooling off, the CBOE VIX, a key measure of market volatility, fell 16% Friday after hitting its highest level in three months on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar gained and 10-year Treasury yields rose. Yields were last up 3.5 basis points at 2.481%.
Stocks weathered some milder turbulence earlier in the week, when Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen testified to Congress.
Some high-priced stocks in the market fell after a report from the central bank said valuations look stretched for biotechnology, social-media and small-cap stocks.
But on Friday, they staged a rebound. Technology and social-media stocks rallied after strong second-quarter results from Google Inc.
The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index rose 3% and the small-cap benchmark Russell 2000 Index tacked on 1.6%. For the week, however, both benchmarks declined, with biotech stocks off 2.6% and small-caps down 0.7%.
Google’s shares rose 3.7% after it posted stronger revenue growth than Wall Street expected, excluding the Motorola Mobility business it plans to sell to Lenovo Group Ltd.
Drugmakers AbbVie and Shire announced jointly their plans to merge on Friday. The $54 billion acquisition is the latest by a U.S. firm looking to move its tax base overseas to save money. Shares of both companies popped Friday.
General Electric shares fell Friday even though the conglomerate reported growth in second quarter revenue and earnings, buoyed by a solid jump in its industrial segment.
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