In the latest Brexit news, United Kingdom and European Union officials announced Thursday that they have reached a new Brexit deal. This move has stimulated U.S. stock markets as investors gain more confidence surrounding global trade. Also, according to Bloomberg, Chinese officials have begun drafting the text for the new trade agreement with the U.S., which the outcome is not yet known but the end of the trade war may be in sight.
Here's how the U.S. Stock Market rested after a positive day of trading:
S&P 500 Index (SPY): +0.28% or 8.26 points
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA): +0.089% or 23.90 points
NASDAQ Composite Index (QQQ): +0.40% or 32.67 points
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted Thursday: "We've got a great new deal that takes back control--now Parliament should get Brexit done on Saturday so we can move on to other priorities like the cost of living, the NHS, violent crime and our environment." E.U. Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker tweeted that the deal was "a fair and balanced agreement for the EU and the UK and it is a testament to our commitment to find solutions."
In ongoing U.S.-China trade war news, a Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng stated that China will increase the purchase of American agricultural products only according to the domestic needs of the country. This statement may run contradictory to the $40-$50 billion annual purchases China was previously stated to have agreed to.
In U.S. economic news, housing is reportedly following the recent trend of various sectors for September, with the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reporting that housing starts fell 9.4% the seasonally adjusted rate. This means that there has been a downturn in construction of new homes below the expected rate from economists. Though overall construction is down, single-family units are continuing to raise for the fourth straight month. These smaller units represent the largest share of the U.S. housing market.
In Stock Sector Performance, every sector saw gains today besides Information Technology's loss of 0.23%. Top gainers included Health Care +0.76%, Real Estate +0.67%, Communication Services +0.64%, Industrials +0.47%, Consumer Staples +0.39%, Consumer Discretionary +0.32%, and Utilities +0.23%.
In Commodity news, West Texas Intermediate saw price gains of 2.02%, with the large jump pricing barrels at $54.04. Brent Crude also increased positivity today, with barrel prices increasing 1.47% to a price of $59.93. Gold has also continued its climb Thursday, by increasing 0.10% to rest at $1,495.50 per ounce.
With positive trade agreements cresting on the horizon, it is unclear how the market will settle when October reaches its end. Brexit news has moved global trade hopefully towards a better market future.