The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) skyrocketed this morning to set yet another five-year high of 5,300.10 points following the US Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) decision to delay tapering its bond-buying program,
It had been widely anticipated that improving data in the US market would prompt a cut to the stimulus program, however, growth forecasts for this year and next as well as current conditions in the job market remained poor, which lead to the decision.
With oil and gold prices soaring on the news, stocks skyrocketed. Leading the gains were the major banks and miners, which saw Westpac (ASX: WBC), ANZ (ASX: ANZ) and NAB (ASX: NAB) jump between 1.15% and 1.35% whilst Commonwealth Bank (ASX: CBA) realised a gain of 0.3%. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) and BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP) also performed strongly, adding on 1.8% and 2.9%. Newcrest Mining (ASX: NCM) was one of the biggest winners with a 7.5% gain, taking its total gain since June to 42%.
Whilst the FOMC's decision also led to an appreciation of the Australian dollar, companies heavily exposed to the US market actually decreased in value. QBE Insurance (ASX: QBE) was perhaps the most notable example, which fell by 1.8%.
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Motley Fool contributor Ryan Newman does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this article.
