New record in the NASDAQ index – E24

While the Oslo Stock Exchange fell sharply at times before the weekend, there was a more subdued development in the US stock market – and on Monday Wall Street continued to rally.

This is how the three most important stock indices closed:

• The Dow Jones rose 0.6 percent
• Standard & Poor’s 500 down 0.9 percent
• The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.6 percent to a record high of 14,942.65 points

The last time the Nasdaq finished with a record was earlier this month, August 5.

The chart below shows how the indicator has evolved over the past year:

Among individual stocks, Biontech stands out, among others, with an increase of 9.6 percent. Vaccine partner Pfizer is also up 2.5%. It happens after the two drug companies obtained the approval of the US Food and Drug Administration for their vaccine, many US media outlets wrote, including CNBC. So far, the vaccine has received provisional emergency approval in the United States. Moderna’s stake is also well on its way, with a 7.6 percent increase. Pfizer hit “all-time highs” on Monday, and stocks of the other two mentioned vaccines are near peak levels.

Travel and leisure stocks contributed to the rally, with Delta and American Airlines up 2.9 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively. Cruise shares in Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Lines are up nearly 4 percent.

Weaker PMI numbers

Before the US stock markets opened for the day, there were preliminary figures for the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), which fell at 55.4 for the month of August, compared to 59.9 in the previous month. According to Trading Economics, an index of 58.3 was expected in advance, according to TDN.

Although the preliminary figures show a weaker development compared to the previous month, they are still above 50, which is an expression of increased activity or growth. Conversely, values ​​less than 50 can generally indicate a decline.

The development of the stock market began today when Asia rose at dawn, before the European stock markets continued to rise, while the pre-trading phase indicated a rally in the US stock market.

Ahead of the weekend, there were some sharp drops in stock markets in Europe and Asia. In Oslo, the main index fell to a maximum of 2.6 percent, before recovering on Monday.

Several experts told E24 that it appears as if the market fears the US Federal Reserve will step down too quickly.

Important Federal Reserve meeting

Investors await the important meeting on Thursday in Jackson Hole, a city in Wyoming, where the US Federal Reserve holds its annual economic conference.

This brings together central bankers, academics, and a few others, and has been a tradition for nearly 45 years. Norway’s Central Bank Governor Oestin Olsen has also been a guest on a number of occasions.

– What I think will get the most attention this week is Jackson Hole. Chief Economist Inge Fauri at Sparebanken Møre told E24 there was broad expectations that the central bank governor would provide more information about the expected reduction in securities purchases.

The event runs on Thursday and Friday of this week.