Stock Market Today: Indexes Soar During Black Friday Shopping
The stock market soared today after traders were encouraged by positive economic news from China and Germany during America’s “Black Friday,” the unofficial start to the holiday shopping season.
Technology stocks saw the largest boost after weeks of sell offs and early reports from retailers on Black Friday suggested a trend for strong holiday spending this year, reports USA Today.
Because of the steady gains in the market today, major stock indexes were able to close out one of their best weeks of the year.
The price of oil also climbed on Friday after a skirmish at the border between Israel and Gaza ended with on Palestinian killed and 19 wounded.
The Dow Industrial closed today at 13,010, surging 173 points to crack the important mark. The NASCAD composite index also reported a gain of 1.4 percent, while the S&P 500 reported a 1.3 percent gain.
Leading among the soaring technology stocks were Dell, AMB, and Hewlett-Packard. Precious metals also saw substantial gains on the stock market today, with silver and gold both reaching nine-month highs.
The Huffington Post notes that Friday’s numbers were the highest seen for the Dow Jones since Election day, a promising sign. As the stock market soared today, shoppers took to retail stores to take advantage of low prices. Many stores opened earlier than ever with Target and Toys R Us opening at midnight, while Walmart opened at 8 pm on Thanksgiving.
Consumer spending accounts for roughly 70 percent of US economic activity, making the holiday shopping season a big driver for the US economy. Traders at the stock market will likely be watching America’s spending in the coming weeks to see how strong or weak it is. The amount that people spend during the holiday season can be a strong indicator for how the country is recovering from the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Along with watching American shoppers during the holiday season, stock market investors will also be looking to Europe for signs of recovery from their recession as well.
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