Daily summary: S&P500, Dow hit record highs as jobless claims fall

• ECB will speed up bond purchases
• Weekly jobless claims data lowest since November 2020
• President  Biden will sign the $1.9 trillion stimulus package on Thursday 

European indices extended recent gains after the ECB left its monetary policy unchanged and pledged to ramp up its asset purchases in a bid to keep borrowing costs low while maintaining the same PEPP total envelope. The ECB president Christine Lagarde considers that any rise in inflation should be temporary and essentially linked to higher energy prices. The Germany 10 Year Government Bond Yield dropped to -0.36%, while its Italian peer edged to 0.60%. France 10 Year Bond Yield fell to -0.07%. Dax 30 rose 0.20% and reached new all-time high, CAC40 gained 0.72% and FTSE 100 finished 0.17% higher.

US indices are also trading higher, with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 soaring to fresh records, as sentiment has been supported by the passage of the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan by the US House of Representatives. President Biden will sign the bill today and not as previously announced on Friday.  Meanwhile, the Nasdaq rebounded and jumped more than 2%, with Tesla shares outperforming as its Model Y was the third best-selling electric car in China in February.

WTI crude rose more than 2.2% and is trading around $65.90 a barrel, while Brent is trading 2.3% higher around $69.50 a barrel. Elsewhere gold fell 0.12% to $ 1,724.00 / oz,  after touching $1740/oz level earlier in the session, while silver is trading 0.25 % lower slightly above $ 26.00 / oz.