Stock markets across the globe experienced a positive surge on Friday because investors believed the Federal Reserve would lower interest rates during early summer. The S&P 500 futures increased by 0.5% while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.1%. The Paris CAC 40 index increased 0.7% to reach 7,554.56 while Germany’s DAX rose 0.4% to 22,154.72 and the UK’s FTSE 100 rose 0.2% to 8,422.52 due to better-than-expected March retail sales data.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo led Asian markets with a 1.9% increase to 35,705.74 while the Kospi in South Korea rose 0.9% to 2,546.15 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong increased 0.3% to 21,980.74. The Shanghai Composite index decreased by 0.1% to reach 3,295.06. Market optimism grew because investors believed President Trump would reduce tariffs and the Federal Reserve received criticism but China officially stated it was not conducting active trade negotiations with the U.S. on Thursday.
Chinese tech stocks experienced a surge because Caijing Magazine revealed that certain U.S.-made semiconductor chips received exemptions from China’s 125% retaliatory tariffs. The stock prices of Lenovo Group and Baidu increased by 3.4% and 3.9% respectively because investors regained their confidence in the technology sector.
