NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks advanced again Friday, boosted by the listing of Elon Musk's Space X, which surged to a capitalization above $2 trillion. The shares issued at $135 closed at $161.11, for a gain of 19.34 percent.
"The IPO parade, which now looks like it's turning into a stampede, has been coming for a while,"Mark Klein, CEO and president at SuRo Capital told CNBC Friday. "SpaceX is going to be the bellwether."
"As you look at the IPO market going forward, there are a lot of companies that want to go public, but you may see some of the more important names wait and see what happens because so much capital is flowing to a handful of companies," Klein added.
The major indices finished at fresh all-time highs on Friday, capping a stellar week driven by resilient economic data and growing expectations of a "soft landing" for the economy.
The Standard and Poor's 500 added 37.16 points to finish at 7,431.46, an increase of 0.50 percent. Trading volume for the broad-market index reached 2.941 billion shares. The index touched an intraday high of 7,456.40 and a low of 7,363.01, continuing its march above the 5,943.23 floor seen earlier in the year. Its current record peak stands at 7,620.90.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average outperformed the other major U.S. indices, climbing 353.51 points to close at 51,202.26, a gain of 0.70 percent. Volume on the blue-chip index totaled 425.935 million shares. The Dow traded between 50,827.84 and a session high of 51,409.70, extending its climb far above the 41,981.14 low and approaching its all-time high of 51,660.40.
The technology-heavy NASDAQ Composite also finished in positive territory, rising 79.18 points to end the day at 25,888.84, a gain of 0.31 percent. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 8.516 billion shares.
U.S. Dollar Edges Higher in Clean Sweep of Major Currencies
The U.S. dollar turned in a resilient performance against major currencies on Friday, gaining ground on all of the majors. Gains however, were modest.
The euro weakened slightly against the greenback. The EUR-USD pair settled at 1.1571, a decline of 0.06 percent, as softer economic data out of the eurozone continued to weigh on the common currency.
The USD-JPY pair traded at 160.23, with the dollar gaining 0.19 percent against the Japanese yen. The move came despite ongoing speculation about potential intervention from Tokyo officials, who have voiced concern over the yen's broader weakness, particularly beyond the 160.00 level.
Sterling also posted a marginal loss against the dollar. The GBP-USD pair finished Friday at 1.3412, down 0.04 percent, as traders digested the latest signals from the Bank of England regarding future interest rate cuts.
Commodity currencies fared similarly. The Australian dollar slipped against its U.S. counterpart, with AUD-USD last trading at 0.7046, a decline of 0.04 percent, pressured by falling iron ore prices.
The USD-CAD pair rose to 1.3982, an increase of 0.10 percent, as the Canadian dollar weakened alongside lower crude oil prices. The loonie remains sensitive to energy market fluctuations.
The Swiss franc was no exception among major currencies. The USD-CHF pair edged up to 0.7968, meaning the dollar advanced 0.24 percent against the safe-haven franc, despite lingering geopolitical uncertainties.
Global Equity Markets Rally to End Volatile Week; Seoul Surges Over 4.6 percent
Global stock markets closed sharply higher on Friday, capping a turbulent week with widespread gains as investors shrugged off recent concerns and piled back into risk assets. Major indices from Toronto to Frankfurt and to Seoul posted significant advances, led by a powerful rally in South Korea.
In London, the FTSE 100 finished at 10,471.72, a gain of 167.84 points, or 1.63 percent.
In Europe, Germany's DAX performed even more strongly, closing at 24,635.30 after adding 425.59 points, a rise of 1.76 percent.
In France, the CAC 40 advanced 150.08 points to end the session at 8,350.87, an increase of 1.83 percent.
The broader EURO STOXX 50 Index surged 130.67 points to 6,187.63, a robust gain of 2.16 percent, while the Euronext 100 Index climbed 31.24 points to close at 1,915.72, up 1.66 percent.
In Belgium, the BEL 20 index also posted solid results, rising 90.32 points to 5,737.19, a gain of 1.60 percent.
Canadian stocks joined the rally. The S&P/TSX Composite Index advanced 266.39 points to close at 34,937.85, an increase of 0.77 percent on volume of 273.753 million shares.
Asian markets set a positive tone earlier in the day.
Hong Kong's HANG SENG INDEX jumped 468.81 points to finish at 24,718.10, a move of 1.93 percent.
The STI Index in Singapore added 37.70 points, closing at 5,025.80 for a more modest gain of 0.76 percent.
Mainland Chinese shares also finished in the green. The SSE Composite Index added 44.50 points to close at 4,031.51, rising 1.12 percent on robust volume of 1.299 billion shares.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 joined the global rally with a gain of 1,802.77 points, ending the day at 66,020.04, up 2.81 percent.
Australian benchmarks saw strong buying interest. The S&P/ASX 200 rose 170.80 points to 8,804.00, up 1.98 percent, while the broader Australian ALL ORDINARIES index gained 169.40 points to end at 9,006.10, an increase of 1.92 percent.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 INDEX climbed 191.71 points to 13,393.87, up 1.45 percent.
India's S&P BSE SENSEX posted one of the day's largest percentage gains, soaring 1,695.41 points to close at 75,527.95, up 2.30 percent.
In Indonesia, the IDX COMPOSITE advanced 121.62 points to 6,007.66, a gain of 2.07 percent, while Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI edged up 4.10 points to 1,683.63, a smaller rise of 0.24 percent.
The day's standout performance, however, came from South Korea. The KOSPI Composite Index exploded higher, skyrocketing 359.67 points to close at 8,123.62, a breathtaking advance of 4.63 percent on volume of 493,406 shares.
Taiwan's TWSE Capitalization Weighted Stock Index also enjoyed a powerful session, vaulting 1,019.58 points to finish at 44,169.04, a gain of 2.36 percent.
Elsewhere, in the Middle East, Israel's TA-125 index rose 82.82 points to 4,292.23, an increase of 1.97 percent. Most other Mideast markets were closed, and will reopen on Sunday.
In Africa, the Top 40 USD Net TRI Index in South Africa jumped 247.70 points to 6,908.25, a surge of 3.72 percent.
(This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence).
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