:::LALKAR GROUP::::

The US share market finished session significantly higher on Wednesday, 27 March 2024, as investors chased for value buying following recent selloff and decrease in treasury yields amid ongoing optimism about the outlook for interest rates. All 11 sectors of the S&P500 registering gains, led by shares in financial, healthcare, materials, industrials, real estate, and utilities sectors.

Treasury yields softened amid ongoing optimism about the outlook for interest rates following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement last week. The Fed left interest rates unchanged, as widely expected, and maintained their forecast for three rate cuts this year.

At closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index surged 477.75 points, or 1.22%, to 39,760.08. The S&P500 index climbed up 44.91 points, or 0.86%, to 5,248.49. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index increased by 83.82 points, or 0.51%, to 16,399.52.

All 11 major S&P 500 sectors inclined, with financial, healthcare, materials, industrials, real estate, and utilities sectors being top performers, rising in-between 1.2-2.8%.

Merck & Co shares advanced 5% after the US Food and Drug Administration approved its therapy for adults suffering from a rare lung condition.

ECONOMIC NEWS: US Mortgage Demand Down 0.7%- A report released by the Mortgage Bankers Association on Wednesday showed an extended pullback by mortgage applications in the week ended March 22nd. The MBA said the Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, fell by 0.7% last week after slumping by 1.6% in the previous week. The Refinance Index led the way lower once again, slumping by 2% from the previous week, while the Purchase Index dipped 0.2% from one week earlier.