Global stock markets were mixed at the end of the first trading week of 2024, with Wall Street carving out a gain yesterday that was not enough to prevent its first weekly loss in 10 weeks despite strong US jobs data.
Employers in the world's biggest economy added 216,000 jobs in December, up from 199,000 in November, with the unemployment rate unchanged at 3.7 per cent, the Labour Department reported on Friday.
The data prompted Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to declare that the country has achieved a soft landing – or bringing down inflation without plunging the economy into recession – after recent jobs data showed continued economic strength in the face of high interest rates.
However, investors remain wary that the Federal Reserve might not be convinced enough to begin easing off on its rate rises throughout 2024, even with inflation cooling down in the US.
The US central bank said it had made “clear progress” in bringing down inflation towards its 2 per cent goal, but officials were less certain on when it may start cutting interest rates, minutes released from their December 12-13 meeting on Wednesday showed.
Major global stock markets ended 2023 trading with mixed results, but Wall Street posted its best annual rise since 2019, entering the new year against the backdrop of economic and political uncertainty.
“Buying stocks with price expectations based on the assumption that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by 150 basis points in the next year, alongside strong final demand and company profits, does not seem easy or logical,” said Rania Gule, a market analyst at XS.com.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.2 per cent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite both inched up 0.1 per cent – dragging them down 1.5 per cent, 0.6 per cent and 3.2 per cent, respectively for the week.
The benchmark S&P 500 settled more than 24 per cent higher in 2023, thanks to a stellar run in megacap technology stocks. It was also just a little short of its record closing high it recorded on January 3, 2022.
The Dow rose 13.7 per cent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged 13.7 per cent and 43.4 per cent, respectively, last year.
Shares in technology giant Apple declined 0.4 per cent on Friday, taking its weekly loss to nearly 6 per cent, the iPhone-maker's worst since September. The California-based company's stock surged by more than 48 per cent in 2023.
In Europe, London's FTSE 100 settled down 0.4 per cent, driving its weekly loss to 0.6 per cent to snap a six-week winning streak, as the market curbed expectations of aggressive monetary policy after the government reported economic data that was better than anticipated.
Paris's CAC 40 gave up 0.4 per cent, and Frankfurt's DAX shed 0.1 per cent.
In Asia, major bourses were mixed. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.7 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite retreated 0.9 per cent.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 ended up 0.3 per cent. The yen posted its worst weekly decline against the dollar in 16 months, on expectations the Bank of Japan will ease up on its monetary policy as it assesses the economic damage stemming from a 7.6-magnitude earthquake that hit the Japan on New Year's Day.
In commodities, oil prices settled higher at the end of the first trading week of 2024 as supply concerns continue to rise on mounting tension in the Middle East and a disruption in production in Opec member Libya.
Brent rose 1.51 per cent to close at $78.76 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate surged 2.24 per cent to settle at $73.81 a barrel.
Gold, meanwhile, barely budged after an up-and-down session, but posted its first weekly drop in four as the dollar rose. The precious metal was virtually flat and settled at $2,049.80 an ounce.
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Mobile phone packages comparison
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
More Expo 2020 Dubai pavilions:
About RuPay
A homegrown card payment scheme launched by the National Payments Corporation of India and backed by the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s central bank
RuPay process payments between banks and merchants for purchases made with credit or debit cards
It has grown rapidly in India and competes with global payment network firms like MasterCard and Visa.
In India, it can be used at ATMs, for online payments and variations of the card can be used to pay for bus, metro charges, road toll payments
The name blends two words rupee and payment
Some advantages of the network include lower processing fees and transaction costs
Results
2.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m
Winner Lamia, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3pm Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,000m
Winner Jap Al Afreet, Elione Chaves, Irfan Ellahi.
3.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m
Winner MH Tawag, Bernardo Pinheiro, Elise Jeanne.
4pm Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 2,000m
Winner Skygazer, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
4.30pm The Ruler of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh250,000 1,700m
Winner AF Kal Noor, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
5pm Sharjah Marathon (PA) Dh70,000 2,700m
Winner RB Grynade, Bernardo Pinheiro, Eric Lemartinel.
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier
UAE results
Beat China by 16 runs
Lost to Thailand by 10 wickets
Beat Nepal by five runs
Beat Hong Kong by eight wickets
Beat Malaysia by 34 runs
Standings (P, W, l, NR, points)
1. Thailand 5 4 0 1 9
2. UAE 5 4 1 0 8
3. Nepal 5 2 1 2 6
4. Hong Kong 5 2 2 1 5
5. Malaysia 5 1 4 0 2
6. China 5 0 5 0 0
Final
Thailand v UAE, Monday, 7am
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
More from our neighbourhood series:
The%20specs
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The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
Overview
What: The Arab Women’s Sports Tournament is a biennial multisport event exclusively for Arab women athletes.
When: From Sunday, February 2, to Wednesday, February 12.
Where: At 13 different centres across Sharjah.
Disciplines: Athletics, archery, basketball, fencing, Karate, table tennis, shooting (rifle and pistol), show jumping and volleyball.
Participating countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Qatar and UAE.
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
