US stocks add to records, oil slips on OPEC

Dubai - US stocks rose to fresh records amid optimism the Federal Reserve won’t move too swiftly to tighten monetary policy as the rate of economic growth falters. Oil retreated from a five-week high after OPEC extended plans to limit production without deepening the cuts.

The S&P 500 Index pushed its longest rally since February to six days as consumer and technology shares advanced amid earnings. 

The dollar steadied in the wake of the Fed minutes, which cast some doubt over the trajectory of interest rate increases but confirmed the likelihood of a June hike. US crude retreated as Saudi Arabia signaled cuts won’t go deeper than expected. The pound fell after disappointing output data.

The Fed language was enough to spur risk appetite, as policy makers indicated they wanted more evidence that recent weakness in economic growth is transitory before removing monetary stimulus further. That helped US and global stocks to post yet more record highs. The bullish sentiment was limited among stock investors in Europe, where some markets were closed today for the Ascension holiday.

Here are key upcoming events:

Britain’s political leaders will resume national campaigning on Friday for the June 8 election.

And here are the main movers:

Stocks

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% at 14:31, headed for a sixth straight gain.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed to 21 060 as it bears down on its March 1 closing record.  The Stoxx Europe 600 was little changed, while emerging-market equities rallied 1%.

Commodities 

Crude was trading 1% lower at $50.80 a barrel in New York, after touching the highest level in more than a month. Gold futures rose 0.2% to $1 259.60 an ounce.

Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed near the weakest level since November. The euro erased a gain to weaken 0.1% to $1.1209. The British pound fell 0.1% to $1.2963.

Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was little changed at 2.25% after losing three basis points on Wednesday.  German 10-year yields fell three basis points to 0.37%. Japan’s sovereign yield curve bear-steepened after the nation’s auction of 40-year bond sale met weaker-than-expected demand.

Read Fin24's top stories trending on Twitter: Fin24’s top stories