In New York, the Dow Jones Index went up by 211 points or 0.56 percent on Friday. Top gainers were American Express (5.97%), JPMorgan (2.50%) and Amgen (2.35%). Biggest losses came from Amazon (-2.54%), Intel (-2.37%) and Microsoft (-1.29%).

The S&P/TSX Composite index rose by 0.47% to close at 21,807 on Friday, driven by gains in the energy and financial sectors. Concerns over potential disruptions to global oil supply boosted the energy sector, with Suncor leading with a 1.15% increase in shares. Major banks, including TD Bank, BMO, and Royal Bank of Canada, also contributed to the index’s rise with gains of 1.31%, 1.11%, and 0.79%, respectively. However, despite the positive performance, the TSX ended the week with a loss of 0.42% as investor sentiment remained cautious due to heightened geopolitical tensions and expectations that the Federal Reserve will remain hawkish for longer.

The S&P 500 fell almost 0.9% to below 5K while the Nasdaq slid 2% on Friday, as Nvidia and Netflix dragged along with woes linked to geopolitical tensions and persistent inflation. Netflix sank 9% after its Q2 revenue guidance disappointed. Nvidia tumbled nearly 10% to book the biggest market-cap loser of the week. Other megacaps including Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Meta also underperformed. Tesla lost 1.9%, a sixth consecutive session of declines, amid new security concerns regarding its vehicles. On the other hand, Dow Jones added 211 points boosted by a 6.1% gain in American Express after earnings and revenue beat expectations. Procter & Gamble gained 0.5% despite its quarterly sales came below forecasts. On the week, the S&P 500 fell 3.8%, its worst week in almost six months. The Nasdaq ended the week 6.1% lower to mark its longest losing streak over a year and the Dow Jones lost 0.9%.

In the United States, all eyes will be on Q1 GDP growth rate and PCE prices, alongside personal income and spending figures. Additionally, investors will closely monitor durable goods orders, S&P Global Manufacturing and Services PMI's and pending and new home sales. Also, earnings season will hit a crescendo with over thirty companies boasting market caps exceeding $100 billion set to unveil their financial reports. Meanwhile, manufacturing and services PMI’s will be released for Australia, Japan, India, France, Germany, the Euro Area, and the United Kingdom. Also, consumer confidence data will be scrutinized for the Euro Area, South Korea, Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Finally, investors will closely watch: interest rate decisions in Japan, China, and Turkey interest rates decisions, Australia's inflation date, and South Korea's GDP growth rate.

The Russian ruble strengthened towards 93 per USD, recouping some losses after sinking to a near half-year low on April 16th, helped by the upcoming end-of-month tax period, which sees exporters convert their income to meet local liabilities. Elevated prices for oil and other key Russian commodities have also acted as a positive driver, translating into higher foreign exchange earnings for the cpmanies. On the other hand, further rebound was limited since the head of Central Bank of Russia, Nabiullina hinted that the loosening cycle by the CBR was likely to begin in the seconf half of 2024. Previously, the regulator had hiked its interest rates by 850 bps to 16% since July 2023 in an attempt to combat inflation and dampen consumer spending. Now, traders will shift their focus to the government's decision on capital controls expiring at the end of April.

In Milan, the FTSE MIB Index went up by 208 points or 0.62 percent on Friday. Top gainers were Terna Rete Elettrica Nazionale (2.20%), Diasorin (1.79%) and Enel (1.41%). Biggest losses came from Buzzi Unicem (-2.20%), Saipem (-2.10%) and STMicroelectronics (-2.09%).

The S&P 500 fell 0.7% to below 5K while the Nasdaq slid more than 1.7% on Friday as post earnings slump in Netflix added to woes linked to geopolitical tensions and persistent inflation. Netflix sunk more than 8% after its Q2 revenue guidance disappointed followed by megacaps including Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Amazon and Meta. Also, Procter & Gamble was slightly down after its quarterly sales came below forecasts and Tesla lost 0.5%, a sixth consecutive session of declines, amid new security concerns regarding its vehicles. On the other hand, Dow Jones added almost 100 points boosted by a 3% gain in American Express after earnings and revenue beat expectations. On the week, the S&P 500 is down around 2.2% so far, its worst week in almost six months. The Nasdaq is on track to end the week 3.6% lower and the Dow Jones 0.6% down.

European shares trimmed sharper losses from the morning but still closed in the red, heeding to geopolitical risks in the Middle East following Israel’s retaliation to Iran’s airstrike during the last weekend. The Eurozone’s Stoxx 50 dropped 0.4% to close at 4,919, marking a 0.7% drop on the week, while the pan-European Stoxx 600 closed slightly under the flatline at 499, a 1.2% drop from last Friday. Tech shares led the losses for another session, as ASML extended this week’s plunge with a 2.3% decline following its pessimistic earnings report on Wednesday, booking a 10% plunge on the week. Consistently, Ayden dropped 3%, while SAP retreated 1.8% ahead of its results release on Monday. On the other hand, L’Oreal led the gains with a 5% surge after delivering strong sales figures for the first quarter, triggering sharp buying activity for other consumer staples.

The FTSE 100 closed higher on Friday, with Mondi shares leading the way with a more than 9% gain. The British packaging company decided against bidding for DS Smith, who had agreed to a 5.8 billion pound deal with International Paper. Consequently, DS Smith's shares plummeted by 10%. As a result, DS Smith saw a 10% drop in its shares. In other corporate news, 888 bookmaker exceeded revenue forecasts for the first quarter, driven by strong customer activity and expects further growth in the next quarter. On the other hand, domestic retail data showed a bleak picture, with sales remaining flat in March.

The CAC 40 posted marginal losses to close at 8,022 on Friday, as investors sought safety amidst persistent concerns of broader conflict in the Middle East and a hawkish Federal Reserve. Nearly all sectors of the Paris exchange declined, led by a 6.65% slide from Worldline, and followed by a 6.88% slump for Edenred and 3.23% drop for Schneider Electric. On a positive note, L’Oréal shares surged by 5.04% after the company reported a robust 9.4% increase in Q1 sales on a like-for-like basis, reaching a four-week high of EUR 442.75. For the week, the CAC 40 rose by 0.6%.

The FTSE MIB rebounded from its morning dip to close in positive territory at 33,922 on Friday, mirroring the performance of its European peers, with concerns over escalating Middle Eastern conflict easing due to a lack of significant reports indicating damage and Tehran's efforts to downplay the situation. The top-performing sectors for the day were utilities and financials. Notable gainers included Terna (+2.2%), Diasorin (+1.8%), and Enel (+1.4%). On the flip side, Stmicroeletronics (-2.3%), Saipem (-2.1%), and Iveco Group (-1.5%) were the biggest laggards. For the week, the FTSE saw an approximate 1.3% increase.

The euro edged towards $1.07 in an attempt to rebound from its recent dip to an over five-month low of $1.06 on April 16th, as concerns regarding potential escalations in Middle East tensions abated, and investors compared the European Central Bank's dovish stance with the Federal Reserve's hawkish approach. Statements from ECB policymakers hinted at a willingness to initiate a reduction in borrowing costs as soon as June, with several officials suggesting the possibility of three rate cuts by the close of 2024. Nevertheless, market sentiment has shifted slightly, with decreased expectations for rate cuts by both the ECB and the Federal Reserve, due to persistent inflationary pressures and signs of economic resilience in the US.

The UK 10-year government bond yield rebounded to the 4.3% mark, inching closer to the five-month high of 4.3457% recorded on April 16th, as concerns over a broader conflict in the Middle East, with Tehran downplaying Israel's attack on Iranian soil earlier on Friday. At the same time, investors scaled back their expectations for interest rate cuts by major central banks this year, influenced by robust data on US consumer spending, inflation, and the job market. Domestically, recent figures from the ONS revealed unexpected stagnation in UK retail sales in March. Additionally, the British inflation rate declined less than anticipated to 3.2% in March, marking the lowest level since September 2021, with the core rate dropping to an over two-year low of 4.2%. Bank of England policymaker Megan Greene emphasized that recent wage growth and service inflation data were too elevated for the BoE to consider cutting borrowing costs.

The yield on the 10-year German Bund surpassed the 2.5% threshold, reaching its highest level since November 27th, as concerns regarding a broader conflict in the Middle East diminished following Tehran's apparent downplaying of Israel's attack on Iranian soil earlier on Friday. Additionally, investors scaled back their expectations for interest rate cuts this year, buoyed by strong US economic data. The revised outlook suggests a probability of less than three ECB rate cuts in total for the year, implying a monetary easing of 70 basis points. This adjustment in expectations occurred despite the bloc's central bank signaling its readiness to start reducing borrowing costs as early as June, with several officials hinting at three rate cuts this year. Elsewhere, Federal Reserve officials are advocating for the US central bank to postpone rate cuts.

The S&P/TSX Composite index rose by 0.5% to surpass the 21,820 level on Friday, bolstered by gains in the energy and financial sectors. Concerns over potential disruptions to global oil supply boosted the energy sector by an average of 0.7%, with Suncor leading with a 0.7% increase in shares. Major banks, including Royal Bank of Canada, TD Bank, and BMO, also contributed to the index’s rise with gains exceeding 0.4%. Notably, Shopify emerged as one of the top performers, with a 2.3% increase in its shares. However, despite the positive performance, the TSX was on track to end the week with a loss of over 0.3%, as investor sentiment remained cautious due to heightened geopolitical tensions and expectations that the Federal Reserve will remain hawkish for longer.