Conflict in the Middle East leaves markets cautious. Wall Street Ends Mixed – Stock Exchange

Major indices on the other side of the Atlantic ended the last session of the week without a specific direction. Investors appear to be choosing safe-haven assets, such as the dollar, gold and sovereign debt, due to the escalation of the conflict between Hamas and Israel in the Middle East, especially after the Israeli army asked civilians to leave the region. Strips. Due to instability in the region, the price of oil rose by more than 5%.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index, the benchmark for the region, fell 0.5% to 4,327.79 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.12% to 33,670.29 points, and the Nasdaq technology index lost 1.23% to 13,407.23 Point, on a day when the technology sector recorded a strong sell-off.

Microsoft ended up not exiting the sector and fell 1% to $327.73. This is even after the British regulatory body gave the “green light” to acquire Activision Blizzard for $69 billion (€62.2 billion at current exchange rates), allowing, more than a year after the start of the process, the acquisition to go ahead. .

The results of some of the largest banks in the United States, in reference to the third quarter, remained the focus of attention throughout today’s session.

JPMorgan shares rose 1.5%, after exceeding third-quarter profit expectations due to tightening monetary policy and the acquisition of First Republic Bank. The bank, led by Jamie Dimon, increased its quarterly net profit by 35% to 13.15 billion US dollars.

Wells Fargo shares gained 2.99%, after achieving profits worth $5.77 billion between July and September, an increase of 61% compared to the values ​​recorded in the same period in 2022, which exceeds market expectations.

Citigroup also added 3.6%, after presenting net results worth $3.5 billion, an increase of 2% compared to the numbers for the third quarter of last year.

Conversely, Blackrock stock fell 1.34%, with investors taking a dim view of the strong inflow of funds from the asset manager. The company, led by Larry Fink, achieved $1.604 billion in the third quarter, an increase of 14% compared to $1.41 billion in 2022.

Investors also weighed comments from Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker, who reiterated that the central bank should keep interest rates at current levels.