The S&P 500 was marginally higher on Wednesday as it edged closer to a record high, mainly led by positive news from Alphabet and private payrolls.
Starting with Alphabet, the parent company to Google announced better than expected Q4 earnings after yesterday’s closing bell.
Earnings came in at $22.30 per share vs $15.90 per share as expected. Revenue also blew past forecasts coming in at $56.90 billion, vs expectations of$53.13 billion.
This came as private payrolls increased by 174,000 jobs last month after dropping by 78,000 in December.
The S&P 500 was up 0.33% in late afternoon trading.
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European markets rise as Super Mario Draghi returns
Former European Central Bank President, Mario Draghi was today called upon to form a new government in Italy.
Draghi was summoned to parliament by Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, who hoped to avoid a general election, in the aftermath of former prime minister Matteo Renzi, pulling his support from the current coalition government.
Despite withdrawing his own support, Renzi applauded the move to bring in Draghi, stating that, “I am so happy because today Italy is in very good hands, Mario Draghi is a special man”.
As a result of the news, Italy’s main index, the FTSE MIB was up 2% today.
Bezos set to leave Amazon, as they beat earnings expectations
Many were expecting Amazon’s earnings call after the closing bell yesterday but were surprised to learn that the company had more in store for them.
The surprise came, as Jeff Bezos announced that he will be stepping down as CEO of the company he founded, moving to the position of Executive Chairman instead.
News of this came as the company recorded blockbuster Q4 earnings of $14.09 vs $7.23 per share. Whilst revenue was recorded at $125.56 billion vs $119.7 billion forecasted.
As of writing Amazon was down 1.79%, after opening in the red.
Quote of the day – “Letting losses run is the most serious mistake made by most investors.”
William O’Neil
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