US equity markets closed lower on Tuesday as the heightened geopolitical fears carried over from the European session, however closed up from their lows as sentiment recovered into the end of the session.
Accendo Markets Analyst, Henry Croft commented – “The Dow Jones closed just shy of flat, with Apple weighing as the Tech firm is hit with a lawsuit from chipmaker Qualcomm, while the Tech sector as a whole led the S&P 0.1% lower. Unsurprisingly, the Tech-focused Nasdaq index underperformed its peers, down almost a quarter of 1%.”
It’s a busy start for the markets this morning with the economic calendar airing it’s reports before we enter the Easter break.
Accendo Markets Analyst, Croft continued – “Following on from yesterday’s inflation release, in focus today will be the latest UK Employment Report. Headline Unemployment is seen holding steady at a record low of 4.7%, with the Employment Rate expected to cool to 70K from 92K previous. With headline and core inflation remaining above the Bank of England’s 2% target, policymakers will be hoping Average Weekly Earnings does not fall below the consensus target of 2.1% from 2.2% previous (2.3% ex-bonus), especially given the increasing price of essential household goods. We may even be given instant reaction to the latest UK macroeconomic release from the central bank, as Governor Mark Carney gives a speech to the International FinTech Conference in London at 9:40am.”
Always keen to stay in the limelight, Trump is due to make a TV appearance later today that is likely to have a bearing on this evening’s session and follow into tomorrow.
Spreadex Analyst, Connor Campbell provided us with some insight – “The President is set to conduct an interview on the Fox Business Network, one that promises to cover everything from healthcare and tax reform to his actions in Syria and the increasingly fractious relationships with Russia and North Korea. All of this is catnip for investors, and may end up overshadowing the reaction to that British jobs data.”
