Economy | News-Opinion
CLOSING BELL: September 21st: DJIA: 13,579.47 | DOWN 17.46 | -0.13%
OIL: $92.89, UP 0.47, +0.51%
GOLD: $1,778.00, UP 7.80, +0.44%
GASOLINE (US Avg): $3.833, DOWN 0.013
Wall Street ends flat despite Spain hope, S&P off for week
Aleksandra Michalska, Reuters – Stocks closed flat on Friday even though investors welcomed Spain’s efforts to seek a bailout and cheered Apple’s newest iPhone that went on sale today, driving its shares to a record high.
Apple Inc (AAPL.O), the world’s most valuable public company in terms of market capitalization, jumped to an all-time high of $705.07 as customers lined up to buy the iPhone 5. Apple’s stock ended up 0.2 percent at $700.10.
News from Spain helped lift stocks after the debt-laden country said it was considering freezing pensions and speeding up a planned rise in the retirement age as it raced to cut spending and meet conditions of an expected international sovereign aid package.
The moves, taken with the European Central Bank’s efforts to spur growth in the euro zone and the Fed’s recent announcement of a third round of quantitative easing, continued to underpin gains.
“The market is predominantly looking forward to the Federal Reserve and the QE infinity that the Fed promised, and the globally coordinated easing cycle,” said Steve Wood, chief market strategist at Russell Investments in New York.
This week, though, the market’s action has been muted, with the S&P 500 barely moving 0.6 percent in either direction daily.
Read the full story at Reuters [here]
The Common Good publishes a financial market wrap-up every weekday after markets close, available here.
