As 2023 draws to a close, the global stock markets have exhibited mixed performances in the final stretch of muted holiday trading. European markets opened higher, with Germany’s DAX climbing by 0.3%, Paris’s CAC 40 rising by 0.4%, and Britain’s FTSE 100 edging 0.2% higher. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures in the U.S. both increased by 0.1%.
Reflecting on the year, some global markets logged solid gains, with benchmarks in France and Germany making double-digit advances, while Britain’s FTSE climbed just under 3%. Japan’s Nikkei 225, despite losing 0.2% on the last trading day, gained 27% throughout the year, its best performance in a decade. This surge was fueled by the Japanese central bank moving away from its ultra-lax monetary policy as inflation exceeded its target. In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended flat, and the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.7%, though it lost about 3% over the year.
India’s Sensex slipped 0.3%, still marking an 18% gain for the year, boosted by retail investors’ expectations of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates in the coming year. Taiwan’s Taiex ended the year up more than 26%, driven by strong gains in semiconductor stocks.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose by 0.1%, marking its ninth consecutive week of gains and an overall increase of over 24% for the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose by 0.1%, with a total gain of 3.5% in 2023. The Nasdaq composite, however, fell slightly but is set to close the year with a gain of over 44%.
In other economic indicators, the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate continued its downward trend, reaching its lowest level since May. This coincides with the general fall in long-term Treasury yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury stood at 3.87%, a significant decrease from its peak of over 5.00% in October.
In the commodities market, U.S. benchmark crude oil and Brent crude both saw price increases, with U.S. crude up 55 cents at $72.32 per barrel and Brent crude advancing 70 cents to $77.85 per barrel.