Having closed yesterday’s session down, at odds with the other major European indexes, the FTSE has again started negatively, dropping 50 points in early trading.
This drop can be attributed, largely, to yesterday’s UK inflation report which boosted the Pound – already enjoying a resurgence in September – on the back of rising inflation, which leaves the currency at 12 month high’s against the Dollar.
The Pound remains at the centre of investors’ attention for the second day in a row ahead of the employment data report scheduled for release later today. ADS Securities analyst, Konstantinos Anthis commented “Indications from various sectors of the economy are pointing in favour of a robust reading for the labour market. Both the manufacturing and services sectors have reported strong employment data in the recent PMI reports so the odds are in favour of another bullish piece of data.”
Over in the Eurozone the DAX and CAC were relatively muted, slipping 0.2% and 0.1% respectively. Spreadex analyst, Connor Campbell noted “In terms of data, the main item on the region’s agenda is the industrial production figure, which is expected to recover from June’s -0.6% with a 0.1% reading in July.”
Over in the US, equity markets closed higher again yesterday. Accendo Markets analyst, Mike van Dulken commented “Financials benefited from higher Treasury yields, while US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin divulged more details on the Trump administration’s proposed tax reforms.”
“This strength propelled the S&P500 to another fresh closing and intraday high, while Goldman Sachs offset McDonald’s losses to help the Dow Jones to within 30 points of its own all-time high. Despite what turned out to be a lacklustre Apple product release, the Tech-focused Nasdaq followed its peers higher.”
