Trading results for 2-6 June 2025
Last week was met with a fair degree of apprehension by analysts and investors alike. Following a 6% rally in May, markets found themselves pressing against key resistance levels – significant from both a technical and psychological standpoint – and there was little clarity as to whether they could be overcome. For much of the week, the indexes appeared to stall, occasionally showing signs of weakness, which only added to the unease among market participants.
Further jitters came midweek, when ADP’s labour market report revealed a sharp decline in the number of new jobs created in May. The mood darkened further as a public spat unfolded between President Trump and Elon Musk, leading to a steep sell-off in Tesla (TSLA) shares. All told, it would be difficult to describe the week as calm or reassuring.
And yet, in true U.S. fashion, the week concluded with something of a happy ending. On Friday, official figures from the U.S. Department of Labor painted a more favourable picture than expected. The May non-farm payrolls report showed an increase of 139,000 jobs – well above the forecast of 126,000. The stronger-than-expected data gave the market a much-needed lift and offered investors a brief reprieve from the political theatre unfolding at the White House, where President Trump continues to lock horns with Tesla and its CEO.
Markets responded enthusiastically, staging a sharp rally on Friday and finishing the week firmly in positive territory. All major U.S. indexes posted gains: the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA-30) rose by 1.17%, while the NASDAQ Composite (IXIC) led the way with a weekly gain of 2.18%. The benchmark S&P 500 (SPX) climbed 1.50%, closing at a symbolic 6000 points – leaving it just over 2% shy of its all-time high.
At the sector level, there were further signs of improvement. While recent weeks had seen defensive names take the lead – notably within the Consumer Defensive sector – investors are now clearly embracing more risk, rotating into faster-moving, potentially more lucrative areas such as technology and communications. As a result, the tech sector gained 3.24% on average, with ON Semiconductor (ON) standing out as one of the week’s best performers, soaring by over 17%.
The ITS family of indexes also delivered strong results. The ITS World Index (ITSW), which tracks global companies, added 2.02% – almost mirroring the NASDAQ’s performance. Notably, ITSW set a new closing high, reaching 1324.83 points – a level last seen on 20 February, more than three and a half months ago.
The ITS Shariah Index (ITSS) also posted a respectable gain of 0.97% for the week. Its performance was held back, however, by the sell-off in Tesla, which saw its shares tumble by 16.98% due to the ongoing clash between Trump and Musk. Tesla is a constituent of both ITSW and ITSS, though its weighting is much greater in the latter – 7.2% compared to just 1.3% – meaning the impact was more acutely felt by the Shariah index. Even so, both indexes managed to finish the week in positive territory.
Overall, the week’s upbeat conclusion brings a measure of cautious optimism, with hopes now pinned on further gains in the near term. The path higher may be uneven – but the prospect of fresh record highs, particularly for the S&P 500, remains very much alive.