SP 500 Exchange rate

Editors’ Picks

US Dollar surges post-Fed, uncertainty remains

The EUR/USD pair closed the week below 1.1500, not far above a fresh multi-week low of 1.1454. The US Dollar (USD) rallied following the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy announcement, the sole market catalyst this past week.

Gold: Bulls regain control; the next leg higher remains uncertain

The precious metal started the week in quite a bearish mood, further extending the almost uninterrupted leg lower after August tops near the $4,700 mark per troy ounce. However, market sentiment made a U-turn in the second half of the week. It was not the Federal Reserve (Fed), reignited geopolitical tensions, the US Dollar (USD) or Treasury yields.

BoJ Recap: Not as hawkish as expected

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) raised its short-term interest-rate target to 1.25% from 1.00% in a 7-2 vote, marking another step in the normalisation of monetary policy and widely matching what everyone has been expecting for weeks.

Bitcoin: BTC shrugs off CLARITY Act setback and hawkish Fed

Bitcoin (BTC) price action has remained resilient this week, trading above $78,000 at the time of writing on Friday, heading toward a key resistance zone. Institutional demand shows early signs of weakness, with spot Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) on track for a second straight week of outflows, with over $420 million recorded through Thursday amid escalating Middle East tensions.

Forecasting the upcoming week: Trump, Xi, oil, tariffs and PMIs

A very positive week saw the US Dollar (USD) climb to new seven-week tops, mostly backed by the hawkish tilt at the FOMC event on Wednesday while unabated strength in Crude Oil prices have also underpinned the move during the first half of the week.

Majors

Cryptocurrencies

Signatures

S&P 500

The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is a stock market index tracking the stock performance of 500 of the largest companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States (US). It is seen as a leading indicator of US equities and includes approximately 80% of the total market capitalization of US public companies.

The S&P 500, operated by S&P Dow Jones Indices, is weighted by free-float market capitalization, meaning that larger companies have a greater impact on the index. Constituents and their weights are regularly updated based on rules set by S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The S&P Index Committee, comprising analysts and economists at Standard & Poor's, selects the companies based on criteria such as market size, liquidity, and industry grouping.

Over time, the S&P 500 serves as a key benchmark for the US economy.

HISTORIC HIGHS AND LOWS FOR S&P 500

All-time records: Max: 6,001.35 on 11/11/2024 – Min: 4.40 on 05/1932
Last 5 years: Max: 6,001.35 on 11/11/2024 – Min: 2,237.40 on 23/03/2020

* Data as of November 2024

ASSETS THAT INFLUENCE THE S&P 500

Currencies: US Dollar (USD).
Commodities: Oil and Gold.
Bonds: US Treasury Bonds.

ORGANIZATIONS, PEOPLE, AND ECONOMIC DATA THAT INFLUENCE THE S&P 500

Since the S&P 500 is a benchmark of US stocks, its value is influenced by a variety of decisions and indicators affecting major companies, including:

Economic indicators inflation – Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) –, consumer confidence (University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index), economic growth (GDP), employment (Nonfarm Payrolls), and salaries (Average Weekly Earnings).
Interest rates, decided by the Federal Reserve (Fed), the central banking system of the US. Kevin Warsh, the 17th Chair of the Fed, has held the position since February 2018 after being nominated by Donald Trump and confirmed by the Senate.
Fiscal policy, trade deals, and business laws decided by the US president, the Treasury Department and the Department of Commerce. The Treasury focuses on fostering economic stability, growth and financial integrity, while the Department of Commerce supports economic growth and established industrial standards.
Energy prices such as electricity and Oil directly impact production costs for companies within the S&P 500.