World shares hit six-month high

World shares hit a six-month high on Friday after China’s moves to boost domestic consumption bolstered a rally driven by investor bets the latest US-China trade fracas was unlikely to dent global growth.

The US benchmark S&P 500 stock index and the Dow industrials scaled record peaks for a second session, though the Nasdaq turned lower soon after the market opened.

MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe gained 0.36 per cent to hit the highest level since March 13, reports Reuters.

Sterling tumbled and pushed the dollar up. The dollar index rose 0.36 per cent to 94.254 against a basket of major currencies.

Benchmark 10-year notes last rose 1/32 in price to yield 3.0739 per cent. The pound fell 1.44 per cent, and was on course for its biggest daily loss since June 2017.

A rally in Chinese markets helped lift MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan 1.32 per cent, partly on expectations that Beijing will pump more money into its economy to weather the trade war.

Miners and banks drove Britain’s top share index up 1.67 per cent, while Germany’s DAX, home to some of the continent’s biggest exporters, rose 0.85 per cent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 84.7 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 26,741.68 and the S&P 500 gained 3.04 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 2,933.79. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 19.72 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 8,008.51.

Oil prices rose ahead of a meeting of the OPEC and other large crude exporters on Sunday that will focus on production increases as US sanctions restrict exports from Iran.

Brent crude oil settled up 10 cents at $78.80 a barrel. US light crude gained 46 cents to settle at $70.78.

US gold futures for December delivery settled down $10 at $1,201.30 per ounce.