Stocks climb, U.S. yields fall on central bank pause hopes A gauge of global stocks rallied and U.S. Treasury yields mostly fell on Thursday, as policy announcements from a string of central banks fueled optimism that interest rate hike cycles may be nearing an end.After the U.S. Federal Reserve raised rates by 25 basis points (bps), as was widely expected, on Wednesday, markets rallied following comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledging the “disinflationary” process may have begun. The European Central Bank (ECB) and Bank of England (BoE) hiked by 50 basis points each on Thursday, with the BoE signaling the tide was turning against inflation and the ECB indicating at least one more hike was on the horizon.On Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbed, with the S&P 500 touching its highest intraday level since Aug. 26 and the Nasdaq hitting its highest since Sept. 12, getting an additional boost from a 24.24% surge in Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc following its quarterly results and $40 billion buyback announcment. After the closing bell, investors will see earnings from heavyweights Apple Inc and Amazon.com IncEuropean stocks rallied, with the STOXX 600 poised for its biggest one-day percentage gain in a month after hitting its highest intraday level since late April.The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 1.37% and MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe gained 1.21%.Benchmark 10-year notes were down 4 basis points to 3.358%, from 3.398% late on Wednesday. The dollar bounced, however, from its biggest one-day percentage drop in nearly a month on Wednesday, while the euro also weakened following the ECB announcement.The dollar index rose 0.594%, with the euro down 0.59% to $1.0924.The Japanese yen strengthened 0.44% versus the greenback at 128.39 per dollar, while Sterling was last trading at $1.2269, down 0.86% on the day.In commodities, oil prices slipped, with U.S. crude recently falling 0.69% to $75.88 per barrel and Brent at $82.23, down 0.74% on the day.
The launched works involve rehabilitating the Galgamuwa Railway Station and upgrading the railway line from Maho to Anuradhapura, including additional tasks. Another project is the second phase of track rehabilitation from Maho to Omanthai (128 kms), funded by a $318 million Indian Line of Credit.
Transport Minister Gunawardena praised the efforts of Indian company IRCON in Sri Lanka and called for more cooperation in the railway sector. State Minister Shantha Bandara and officials from the Sri Lankan Ministry of Transport attended the event.
Railways is a priority for Indian assistance in Sri Lanka, with over $1 billion invested under five Indian Lines of Credit. IRCON has been involved in Sri Lanks since 2009. It has contributed to the modernisation of Sri Lanka Railways by reconstructing the entire railway line network in the Northern Province (253 Km) and upgradation of the Southern line (115 km), as well as improving safety through advanced signalling and telecommunication systems.
Despite Sri Lanka’s debt standstill in April 2022, India’s support under various Lines of Credit has continued.
(With PTI inputs)