By IFCMarkets
Nasdaq hits record high as broad market little changed
US stocks ended mixed on Tuesday as Nasdaq closed at a record high for a third session while the Dow Jones industrial average ended further down from the psychologically important 20000 level. The dollar strengthened: the live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, closed 0.18% higher at 102.029. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 0.2% to 19855.53, led by Merck and Exxon Mobil shares. The S&P 500 finished mostly unchanged at 2268.90 with five of the eleven main sectors ending in negative territory. The Nasdaq index gained 0.4% to 5551.82, up for the sixth straight session.
Investors are awaiting the start of the earnings season, with JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America among banks due to report on Friday. In economic news, wholesale inventories jumped 1% in November. Today at 17:00 CET Trump’s news conference will take place at Trump Tower in New York. Before that at 13:00 CET Mortgage Applications will be released by the Mortgage Bankers’ Associations in US.
Italy will not need the support of euro-zone bailout fund
European stocks closed higher on Tuesday ending two day slide helped by modest gains in bank shares with the health of Italian financial sector still in focus. Both the euro and the British Pound ended higher against the dollar. The Stoxx Europe 600 inched 0.1% higher. Germany’s DAX 30 climbed 0.2% to 11583.30. France’s CAC 40 ended nearly flat and UK’s FTSE 100 index outperformed gaining 0.5% to 7275.47.
Italian bank stocks pared earlier losses following late Monday news Popolare di Vicenza and Veneto Banca proposed a settlement deal with shareholders that could cost them more than €600 million ($636.03 million), lowering their capital buffers which could push them to ask for a state bailout. Though these banks aren’t publicly traded, the news stoked concerns about Italy’s ailing banks. Today Italy’s economy minister Pier Padoan said Italy will not need the support of the euro-zone bailout fund European Stability Mechanism to help the troubled lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena. Italy will inject 6.6 billion euros ($6.97 billion) in public money into Monte dei Paschi after the bank failed to complete a capital boosting plan last year, according to minister. Today at 10:30 CET November Trade Balance, Manufacturing and Industrial Production as well as Construction Output will be published in UK, the outlook is positive for Pound. At 15:15 CET Bank of England governor Carney peaks. And at 16:00 CET the change in the estimated value of all goods and services produced by the economy during the previous three months ending in December will be released, the outlook is positive.
Asian markets rebound
Asian stocks are mostly up today as investors await president-elect Trump’s news conference later in the day. Nikkei ended 0.3% higher today at 19364.67, halting declines after three straight sessions of losses as yen weakened against the dollar. Chinese stocks are mixed with the Shanghai Composite Index down 0.8% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index is up 0.8%. China increased punitive tariffs on imports of a US animal feed ingredient known as distillers’ dried grains from levels first proposed last year, potentially escalating a trade spat between the world’s two largest economies. Australia’s All Ordinaries Index rose 0.2% with Australian dollar gaining against the dollar.
Oil prices recover while US crude stock build is expected
Oil futures prices are edging higher today on reports Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, was cutting crude supplies slightly from contracted volumes in February, including to India and Malaysia. Still, investors are concerned supplies from other producers are rising. Iraq plans to raise crude exports from its southern port of Basra to 3.641 million barrels per day (bpd) in February, an all-time high. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday that American crude production in 2017 would rise by 110000 bpd to 9 million bpd. At 16:30 CET today Crude Oil Inventories will be released by the EIA. A build in inventories is expected. March Brent crude dropped 2.4% to $53.64 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange yesterday.
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