Investing.com – Take a peek at the top 5 things that rocked U.S. markets this week.
The ‘flight to safety’ trade kicked in
The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended the week in negative territory, after geopolitical jitters triggered a ‘flight to safety’, as investors ditched risk assets in favor of safe-haven assets such as gold, U.S. treasuries and the yen.
The official start of the U.S. earnings season failed to shift focus from concerns over geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and North Korea, despite solid first quarter results from both Citigroup Inc and JPMorgan.
OPEC stepped up compliance in March
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) new monthly report revealed its members cut oil output in March more than anticipated.
Compliance with the global deal to drain the glut in supply, averaged 104% according to production figures published by OPEC.
Crude prices settled higher on Thursday to notch a third straight week of gains, following a slump to a four-month low of $47.01 in March, on the back of concerns that a ramp up in U.S. oil production could dampen OPEC’s efforts to reduce supply.
Gold had its best week since June
Gold prices had its best week since June, as the risk-off sentiment continued to fuel demand for the yellow metal, which is considered a safe haven asset. Gold rose to a five month high on Thursday.
Tesla moved ahead of General Motors
Tesla overtook General Motors to become the most valuable U.S. automaker on Tuesday, after Wall Street research firm Piper Jaffray upgraded the stock from neutral to overweight.
Piper analyst Alexander Potter said he is convinced that Tesla will begin Model 3 deliveries this year and not mid-2018 as previously assumed but also warned that investors would need to “employ a creative valuation methodology and prepare for a bumpy ride”.
Meanwhile, Tesla CEO Elon Musk sprung a surprise on investors Thursday, after he said the company will unveil an electric semi-truck this September and added that the vehicle is “seriously next level”.
Trump tanked the dollar
The dollar suffered its biggest one-day decline in more than three weeks on Wednesday, after President Donald Trump said the currency is getting “too strong” and added "I do like a low-interest rate policy, I must be honest with you”.
USD/JPY slipped to a five-month low, after investors poured into the safe haven yen amid a rise in market volatility, as unfavorable geopolitical events unfolded throughout the week.