5 things to start your day
1) Mr Sunak risks clash with Mr Bailey as Britain teeters on the brink of recession | Sunak risks clash with Bailey as Britain teeters on the brink of recession
2) Lawmakers say China is ‘weaponizing’ its dominance in critical minerals | Britain’s net zero drive is at risk due to dependence on China
3) Coal usage will reach record high in 2023 despite push to virtually zero | Increased usage in China and India drives demand
Four) How diversity policies attacked white male supremacy in office | Revelations about Aviva’s recruitment policies spark debate on diversity in the city
Five) Ben Marlow: Thames Water has a new face, but the same old problems | Chris Weston steps into stinking turmoil as new boss of debt-laden British water company
what happened overnight
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, made up of 30 major U.S. companies, rose 0.43% to $37,248.35, while the broader S&P 500 index rose 0.26% to close at 4,719.55. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.19% to 14,761.56.
“Behind the scenes, large-cap stocks are taking a breather, while small-cap and mid-cap stocks are extremely strong,” said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group. “This is a sign that the bull market is expanding.” The S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index rose 2.37% and the S&P SmallCap 600 Index rose 2.91%.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields fell to 3.9152% from 4.033% late Wednesday after the Federal Reserve signaled a potential rate cut in 2024. This is the first time since August that yields have fallen below 4%.
Asian stocks rose on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose.
Hong Kong led Asia’s rise as real estate developers surged after some Chinese cities eased purchasing restrictions.
The Hang Seng rose 3% to 16,893.62. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.3% to 2,968.49.
Shares in troubled developer Country Garden rose 5.1%, China Evergrande rose 3% and Sino Ocean Holding rose 5.7%.
China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported that factory output rose 6.6% and retail sales rose more than 10% in November, marking the latest economic improvement after the post-COVID-19 recovery fizzled out faster than expected. Signs are starting to appear.
But real estate investment slumped further, showing that the industry’s crisis over debt overhang is far from resolved.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index rose 0.9% to 32,965.55, while Seoul’s Kospi rose 0.9% to 2,565.71. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9% to 7,443.40.
Bangkok’s SET rose 1.3% and India’s Sensex rose 0.6%.