At the close of trading on 19/9, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) rose 0.37% to 46,315 points. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.7%. These were all new records for Wall Street.

Seven of the 11 sectors in the S&P 500 advanced in the final session of the week. Shares of freight carrier FedEx rose 2.3% after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings. Apple climbed 3.2% as JP Morgan raised its price target for the stock. Other tech companies like Palantir Technologies and Oracle also rose 3-4%.

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Photo: Reuters

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Photo: Reuters

The market also responded positively to a phone call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump said the two leaders had made progress on the TikTok sale and agreed to meet in person next month in South Korea.

For the week, these indexes rose between 1% and 2.2%. This was the third consecutive week of gains for Wall Street, mainly due to the Federal Reserve (Fed) cutting interest rates for the first time this year and hinting at further easing.

All three major US stock indexes are up in September, a month that typically sees poor performance. Data from financial services firm LSEG shows that on average, from 2000 to 2025, the S&P 500 has declined 1.4% in September.

In the gold market, the price closed the week up 40 USD at 3,684 USD an ounce. This reversed the previous session's 15 USD decline.

"The market is still quite strong and only corrected slightly after the Fed cut interest rates. The upward trend is unaffected. The price could reach 4,000 USD by the end of this year," said Bob Haberkorn, a strategist at RJO Futures.

Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding gold. The precious metal also performs well during periods of volatility and has risen nearly 40% this year. Gold has now recorded its fifth consecutive week of gains.

Silver also rose 2.2% to 42.7 USD an ounce. Platinum gained 1.4% to 1,403 USD. Palladium held steady around 1,150 USD. "I'm seeing many investors shifting to silver and platinum because they are more affordable than gold," Haberkorn concluded.

Ha Thu (Reuters)