The FTSE 100 lost around 1.5% in trading on Monday as stocks reversed Friday’s gains after the EU Summit relief rally fully waned. Investors have refocused their gaze on the fact that there remain deep concerns over the ability of the EU to address near term pressures on sovereign bond yields, whilst a profit warning...
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European markets have struggled for direction today ahead of tomorrow’s EU summit. Investors who were hoping for a more decisive steer from the European Central Bank were left disappointed despite a rate cut of 25bps. The refusal of the ECB to commit to buying unlimited sovereign bonds, as well as closing the door to...
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A bit of a Jekyll and Hyde day today, after opening with a fairly positive bias, European markets slid back in the afternoon session, as policymaker statements started to down-play expectations ahead of this week’s EU summit. Talk that a bigger financial bazooka was being prepared gave markets an early boost, however comments from...
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Financial stocks such as banks and insurers led a 0.3% rally in the FTSE 100 as investors eyed a potentially pivotal week for the future of the Eurozone. It’s been a positive start to an important week in the life of the Eurozone with Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy agreeing joint proposals to bring...
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If the Euroland ship under Captain Merkel can be said to be rudderless, the captain of the American equivalent has apparently gone AWOL. Not that the lack of command and control is doing the US dollar spreads any harm. The dollar has been the best performer in the last seven days, despite the failure...
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The Aussie moved ahead of sterling on the week, adding about a cent; not a significant achievement. See also GBP/AUD spread trading. Inexplicably it kept close company with a motley group including the Canadian dollar, the Swiss franc and the yen – currencies which more usually find themselves at opposite ends of the spectrum. Two...
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