35 days later…

Global markets continue to outdo themselves, and posted fresh records during Wednesday’s trading session. Investors in Europe focused on earnings and fresh data releases, while digesting President Donald Trump’s address to Congress. US stock markets vaulted to fresh highs with the biggest news being that the Dow Jones Industrial Average broke above 21,000 for the first time, only 35 trading days after breaching the 20,000 mark.

Europe

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 1.26% higher with all sectors trading in positive territory. Construction and material stocks were among the best performers, profiting from President Trump’s promises to invest in infrastructure.

Broader gains in Europe found support as the euro fell against the US dollar, as odds of a March interest-rate hike by the Federal Reserve hit 70%. New York Fed President William Dudley said the case for an interest rate hike has become “a lot more compelling”, while San Francisco Fed President John Williams said a rise “is on the table for serious consideration” at the March meeting.

With that, Germany’s Dax was sailing in positive territory, and jumped 1.8% and broke above the 12,000 mark. Automakers Volkswagen and Daimler helped contribute to this rise, after posting gains of 3.1% and 2.2% respectively. Meanwhile, the index’s top performer on Wednesday was Deutsche Bank, as the lenders shares popped up 4.9%.

Amongst individual movers, shares of ITV rose on Wednesday. The broadcaster just announced it plans to pay a special dividend, and that it is confident of strong trading going forward. This news sent its shares up 3.75%.

America

In his first address to a join session on Congress late Tuesday, Trump said he wanted to boost the US economy with a “massive” tax relief, make a $1 trillion effort on infrastructure and overhaul Obamacare. His comments, though lacking in detail, helped underscore his pro-growth stance that has pushed Wall Street to record highs in a post-election rally.

The Dow advanced more than 250 points, with Goldman Sachs contributing the most gains. The S&P500 index was up over 1%, outperforming the other 10 major sectors, led by gains in financials such as JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo.

Investors also paid close attention to new economic data on Wednesday. Personal income rose 0.4% in January, topping expectations, while consumer spending slowed. However, the personal consumption expenditures price index jumped 1.9% in the 12 months through January, putting inflation very close to the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%.