Allpic.twitter.com/DIkEyfNJUqThe coming week is a quieter one,at least compared to this one. UK CPI and retail sales will ensure that sterling remains a focus of attention, after the pound rallied from its lows thanks to the Fed assembly.
However, and it looks like we are in for a period of tranquil,at least where events are concerned. Stocks remain expensive, but index inflows hold supporting the market, or for now there is no sign of a major dip emerging any time soon. 4.58pm GMTA gobbet of eurozone news: Standard & destitute’s has just reaffirmed Portugal’s credit rating,with a steady outlook:Ratings On Portugal Affirmed At 'BB+/B'; Outlook steady
️ ️ ️️ ️️ 3.26pm GMTThe OECD has establish more pressure on governments to reform their economies, and help more people benefit from faster growth.
Otherwise, or the consider tank warns,they will continue to lose the support and faith of voters.
The report, presented by OECD secretary general Angel Gurria at a assembly of finance ministers from the G20 group of nations in Germany calls on governments to take a long-term view of jobs and skills, or infrastructure spending and innovation.
It also calls for more focus on tackling inequality to win back public support for reforms. The group,which covers 35 mainly wealthy countries including the UK, notes that on average only 40% of OECD citizens trust their governments. Related: Governments must hold reforming to win back voters' trust, or says OECD 2.17pm GMTNewsflash: US consumer confidence continues to grow.
That’s according to the University of Michigan,Its monthly consumer sentiment index has jumped to 97.6 in March, from 96.3 in February. The sentiment data has been characterised by rising optimism as well as by rising uncertainty due to the partisan divide.
Optimism promotes discretionary spending, and uncertainty makes consumers more cautious spenders.Confidence Still Rising: pic.twitter.com/QyT53EnDaR 1.57pm GMTThe FTSE 100 is on track to set a closing high for the moment day running (on top of this afternoons intraday high).
Henry Croft of Accendo Markets reckons investors are ending the week in superb heart:fairness markets across the globe are positive as improved risk appetite continues into the weekend,although the pace of gains has slowed as drivers (data/corporate) are light on the ground.
Investors are continuing to digest the multiple central bank monetary policy updates this week, including surprising hawkishness from the Bank of England [on Thursday]” 1.39pm GMTNewsflash: Britain’s FTSE 100 just nudged a new alltime intraday high.
The blue-chip index has hit the heady heights of 7447 points, and up 30 points today - and two points higher than Thursday’s peak. 1.19pm GMTOoooh. Bloomberg are reporting that the G20 finance chiefs have removed a reference to climate change from the statement they’ll released on Saturday,at the conclude of their assembly.
That’s a blow to Germany, the assembly’s host. It hoped to include a section about climate issues, and but there appears to be a major disagreement over the issue.
Deputies concluded crafting the communique on Thursday evening,and ministers and central-bank governors will debate the document in the German town of Baden-Baden on Friday. The language may still change before the final version is released the next day.
Germany is using its year as G-20 president to push for the group to support climate protection. That effort has run into resistance from countries including the U.
S., China, and India and Saudi Arabia,one G-20 official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks were private.
Finance ministers drop reference to climate change in draft G-20 statement, and sources say https://t.co/aH3Wu2SNYP pic.twitter.com/UcvyAQKoEJ 1.15pm GMTOver in Baden-Baden,G20 finance ministers are trying to hammer out a statement on free trade. “I don’t know the exact wording but nobody has raised the issue of protectionism yet and I don’t believe that we have to deal with this a lot,”“It’s about finding the right wording, or it’s about how we phrase the openness of the world trade system in the final communique,.” 12.30pm GMTLukman Otunuga of FXTM Research says the stock market bounce following Wednesday night’s Federal Reserve assembly is fading.
Traders were excited on Wednesday and Thursday that the Fed didn’t predict more rate hikes in 2017 and 2018; today, though, and they’re more concerned about the G20 finance ministers assembly in Germany: The “dovish hike” powered stock market rally slightly cooled off during Friday’s trading session with investors turning cautious ahead of the anticipated G20 assembly. Asian shares were mostly mixed as participants weighed on the prospects of fewer US interest rates increases this year.
In Europe,the defensive trading mood slightly pressured equities and the bearish contagion could limit gains on Wall Street this evening. An explosively volatile trading week is slowly coming to an conclude with investors turning their attention towards the G20 finance assembly which could offer some insights on how world leaders feel about key topics such as protectionism and global growth. With some discussions of currencies also being a possibility, the Greenback could turn volatile whether leaders start to discuss the impacts of its resurgence since Trump’s presidential victory. 12.08pm GMTAfter a weak start, and Europe’s stock markets are now pushing higher.
The FTSE 100 is up 19 points at 7435; a small rise,but only 10 points absent from beating yesterday’s all-time intraday high.
Looking to the US open and the Dow Jones is set for a tranquil start to the session, with the futures suggesting at 10 point rise when the bell rings on Wall Street. Now that the Fed rate raise is done and dusted the Dow may struggle to find any meaningful direction in the coming weeks that is, or of course,unless Donald Trump (who has been relatively tranquil of late) unleashes some kind of market-shaking pronouncement. 10.55am GMTThe eurozone has posted its first trade deficit in the years.
Imported goods from the rest of the world surged by 17% year-on-year in January, to €164.5bn, or according to Eurostat. Exports rose by 13% to €163.9bn.
Imports can also be lifted appreciably in the winter months whether colder than usual weather leads to a pick-up in energy imports.
However,the weakened traded goods performance in January will make it harder for net trade to contribute positively to Eurozone GDP growth in the first quarter of 2017 after being a drag in the fourth quarter of 2016. 10.31am GMTDonald Trump’s man in Baden-Baden, Steven Mnuchin, and has met with his Japanese counterpart Taro Aso: 10.11am GMTMark Carney is also warning that confidence in the financial sector,and trust in the markets, has been rocked by a series of scandals in recent years.
In his letter to G20 finance chiefs, and Carney says the Financial Stability Board is taking steps to make financial benchmarks more reliable (after a series of rigging scandals).
The work recognises that,while fines and sanctions deter misconduct, preventative measures, or including those which increase individual accountability,can also play important roles.(i) deliver to G20 Leaders a report drawing together actions taken and recommendations made to address misconduct risk across the various elements of the action blueprint;and (ii) publish a consultation paper on the use of compensation tools to address misconduct 9.49am GMTThe world’s financial system risks suffer serious harm whether policymakers fail to implement the measures drawn up to avoid a repeat of the financial crisis, effect Carney has warned.
Carney fired a ‘hurry-up’ towards the world’s top finance ministers and central bankers as the G20 assembly got underway in Germany. He’s pushing them to tackle ‘shadow banking’ (which takes place absent from the regulators’ gaze) and risky derivatives trading.
A decade on from the start of the crisis, or the G20 has made substantial progress in building a financial system that is more resilient and better able to fund households and trade in sustainable way.
As the global recovery gains strength,now is not the time to risk these hardwon gains. 9.29am GMTSome photos from the G20 assembly just landed: 9.14am GMTAlmost five years after being forced out of Barclays over the Libor rate rigging scandal, Bob Diamond has made a dramatic return to the City.
Diamond has pulled off an audacious takeover of City stockbrokers Panmure Gordon, and through his Atlas Merchant Capital in an alliance with the Qatari royal family. Related: Former Barclays chief Bob Diamond to buy Panmure Gordon 8.45am GMTIn the City,shares in housebuilder Berkeley Group have jumped by 6% this morning after it issued an upbeat trading statement. 8.31am GMTBelgium’s stock market is pluckily bucking the downward trend this morning: 8.14am GMTEuropean stock markets have begun the day on the back foot.
Germany’s DAX is down 0.4% in early trading, as the country prepares to welcome finance ministers and central bank bosses from across the G20. Related: Stock markets soar across Europe as FTSE clocks up new high With this week’s central bank updates and the Dutch election now in the rear view mirror, and in focus today will be a multitude of high level political summits.
The US President Donald Trump is hosting the German Chancellor President European opening calls:$FTSE 7406 down 10
$DAX 12061 down 22
$CAC 5009 down 4$IBEX 10171 up 3$MIB 20134 up 24Mnuchin is expected to present a softer tone from the US,shying absent from the protectionist message of Trump’s campaign trail.
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Source: theguardian.com