Anticipation boosts oil prices, stocks worldwide on Biden’s Mideast visit
ALBAWABA – Investors dealt in a mixed bag of stocks worldwide as gold prices rose on Tuesday ahead of United States (US) President Joe Biden’s visit to Tal Aviv in an attempt to contain the volatile situation in Palestine and the region, amid fears of genocide in Gaza.
Contrary to the usual pattern, both gold prices and stocks worldwide mostly rose despite the tension and uncertainty of the situation in the Middle East region.
Gold prices edged up $7.17, or 0.37 percent, by 03:57 p.m. Amman time, according to GoldPrice.org.
Gold futures rose 0.2 percent to $1,937.50 an ounce, Bloomberg reported, and spot gold settled at $1,926.62 an ounce.
Stocks worldwide rise on higher gold prices, stronger US dollar
Oil prices also picked up, along with the US dollar, in another paradoxical phenomenon that speaks to the ambiguity of the situation at large.
Stocks worldwide were mixed on uncertainty and anticipation of official statements from central bank policymakers around the world.
Europe's main stock markets rose slightly at the start of trading Tuesday following gains across Asia and on Wall Street, AFP reported.
Usually, gold prices go down when stocks worldwide pick up as investors opt for higher margins from high-risk equity investments - Shutterstock
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index grew 0.1 percent to 7,638.48 points, and in the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX index gained 0.1 percent to 15,259.30 points and the Paris CAC 40 won 0.1 percent to 7,032.24.
Meanwhile, in Asia, the Hang Seng Index jumped 0.75 percent, to 17,773.34, and the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.32 percent, to 3,083.50, breaking a weeks-long streak of declines. The Shenzhen Composite Index on China's second exchange was flat, though inching down 0.12 points to 1,884.20, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Tokyo stocks rebounded from the decline in early sessions to close higher on Tuesday, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 index up 1.20 percent to 32,040.29 and the broader Topix index adding 0.82 percent to 2,292.08, according to AFP.
Markets summary by AFP and Bloomberg:
Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.1 percent
MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.7 percent
MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.6 percent
New York - Dow: UP 0.9 percent at 33,984.54 points (close)
New York - S&P 500: UP 1.1 percent at 4,373.63 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: UP 1.2 percent at 13,567.98 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,630.63 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.3 percent at 15,237.99 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 7,022.19 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 4,149.86 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.0 percent at 31,659.03 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 17,640.36 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,073.81 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0562 from $1.0513 on Friday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2218 from $1.2138
Dollar/yen: FLAT at 149.53 yen from 149.53 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.42 pence from 86.58 pence
