The European markets have picked up the pace this Friday morning as investors cheer the end of the Tesco/Unilever argument.
In terms of drama this morning has been relatively disappointing; though, to be fair, nothing could compare to the highs and lows of the Brexit’s epoch-defining moment – Marmite-gate. The swift resolution of Tesco and Unilever’s price disagreement has seen the former jump to the top of the FTSE 100’s best performers list this Friday, the supermarket surging by more than 4%. Unilever, on the other hand, has shed another 0.7%, investors now focusing on the lacklustre third quarter report that got lost in the fray yesterday.
Tesco’s rebound, and the gains it has inspired in the rest of the supermarket sector, has helped lead the FTSE 50 points higher, the index also benefiting from a mining stock recovery. The Eurozone indices were even more enthusiastic this Friday, the DAX and CAC surging 1.7% and 1.9% respectively. The pound, meanwhile, has shrunk its earlier losses against the dollar, and is actually in the green against the euro, though this still leaves sterling sharply lower than it was at the start of the week.
Looking to the US open and the Dow Jones is set to match the growth seen by its UK peer, the futures suggesting a 70 point increase after the bell. At points during yesterday’s trading the Dow was at 1 month lows, so the index has plenty of room to rise this afternoon. Data-wise the US retail sales are set to rise from -0.3% to 0.6% month-on-month, while the preliminary UoM consumer sentiment reading is expecting to jump to 92.1 from 91.2.
