Global markets rise on key US data as confidence begins to return

Global shares turned higher on Tuesday, stemming a five-session rout after key US data met expectations and bolstered bets of a smaller interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve at its next meeting.

DUBLIN

The bounce in the US was felt in the Irish market, and there was green across the board on Euronext Dublin as the index closed up 2.2 per cent.

Stocks around the world have been hammered in the past few days after the collapse of SVB Financial Group and peer Signature Bank sent shock waves through the banking sector.

However, investor confidence in the sector began to recover on Tuesday, and Bank of Ireland and AIB were both up 4 per cent at close of business.

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The airlines started trading weakly but rallied throughout the day with Lufthansa up 2 per cent; Aer Lingus parent International Airlines Group up 1.5 per cent; EasyJet up 4.5 per cent; and Ryanair up 1.5 per cent.

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The goodwill also fed into the travel and leisure sector as Dalata — the biggest hotel operator in the State — finished the day up 2 per cent.

Among the food names, Glanbia was up 2 per cent, while Greencore climbed 2.5 per cent.

In the construction sector, building materials giant CRH traded up 2.3 per cent, while insulation specialist Kingspan and Woodies DIY parent Grafton Group both finished the day up 2 per cent. Elsewhere, box-maker Smurfit Kappa climbed 2 per cent.

LONDON

The FTSE 100 jumped by more than 1 per cent, marking a rollercoaster session for the stock exchange which started the day firmly in the red.

However, London’s top index did not manage to fully offset the 2.6 per cent decline on Monday, during which more than £50 billion was wiped off its value.

London’s top banking stocks like Standard Chartered, Barclays and HSBC had returned to growth on Tuesday after sinking into the red at the start of the week. The FTSE 100 closed 1.17 per cent higher.

In company news, Sainsbury’s said it has agreed to buy the freeholds of 21 supermarkets in a deal worth more than £430 million. Its share price was up by 1.1 per cent at the close.

EUROPE

European stocks managed to rebound after seeing even greater declines than the UK, with the German Dax moving 1.83 per cent higher and the French Cac up 1.86 per cent.

Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at online trading platform IG, said: “Market sentiment appears to have a turn for the better today, with equities throughout Europe and the US moving higher despite ongoing concerns over the health of the banking sector.”

NEW YORK

Across the Atlantic, battered US bank shares rebounded, driving Wall Street’s main indexes higher, while a slight slowdown in consumer price growth prompted investors to price in a smaller rate hike by the Federal Reserve in March.

Data showed the US consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.4 per cent in February from 0.5 per cent in January as Americans faced persistently higher costs for rents and food. On a yearly basis, the CPI rose 6 per cent in February, compared with 6.4 per cent the previous month.

Regional bank stocks rebounded after suffering double-digit losses over the past few days, with the KBW Regional Banking index up 7.7 per cent.

First Republic Bank jumped 49.5 per cent, while shares of peer Western Alliance Bancorp were up 40.7 per cent. Trading in shares of both banks was halted multiple times due to volatility.

The S&P 500 banking index rose 2.9 per cent after recording its biggest one-day percentage drop since June 2020 in the previous session. Meta Platforms rose 6.1 per cent after the Facebook parent said it would cut 10,000 jobs in a second round of mass lay-offs.

Other major rate-sensitive growth stocks such as Apple, Google parent Alphabet, and Tesla rose between 1 per cent and 4 per cent. — Additional reporting: PA/Reuters