The Nasdaq Composite rose for the eighth straight session


US indices closed with slight collective gains in yesterday's session, Monday, with the continued wave of optimism regarding interest cuts next year despite pessimistic statements from policymakers in the US Federal Reserve.

The head of the Federal Reserve Bank in Chicago warned that the central bank had not previously committed to reducing interest rates any time soon, while the head of the Federal Reserve in Cleveland, Loretta Mester, said that financial markets were slightly ahead of the bank regarding the timing and extent of the reduction.

However, financial markets have estimated a 63% probability that the central bank will cut its interest rate target by 25 basis points at its March monetary policy meeting.

Performance of major US indices:

The Dow Jones index rose less than one point in Monday's session to hold above 37,300 points at the close.

The S&P 500 index also rose by 0.45%, closing above 4,740 points for the first time since January 2022, despite Apple's stock falling by about 0.9% after reports of an increasing Chinese ban on iPhones.

The Nasdaq Composite Index rose by about 0.6%, achieving the eighth daily gain in a row, closing above 14,900 points for the first time since January 2022.

Trading volume on US stock exchanges reached 11.75 billion shares, compared to an average of 11.9 billion during the last 20 sessions.

Meta Shares

Meta stock rose 2.9% in Monday's session to its highest levels in two years, with the company adding $25 billion to its market value in one day.

These gains came with optimism that the Facebook owner would achieve its best annual performance ever.

This confirms what Mark Zuckerberg announced, in early February, that 2023 will be a year of efficiency for the company, as he put cost reduction at the top of his agenda, and the owner of WhatsApp has eliminated more than 20,000 jobs.

US Steel shares:

US Steel shares jumped about 26% in Monday's session, reaching the highest level in more than 12 years.

These gains came after Japanese company Nippon Steel announced that it would buy the steelmaker in a deal worth $14.9 billion, including debt.