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Stocks are in positive territory as the end of the trading session nears.
Europe
A number of EU countries have suspended the distribution of the AstraZeneca-Oxford coronavirus vaccine due to health concerns. The vaccine in question has received support from the WHO and the European Medicines Agency. Eurozone stock markets are higher despite the back and forth around the vaccine. It looks like the US $ 1.9 trillion stimulus package is still supporting the rally in global stocks. In the next few days we will hear from the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England, but no policy changes are expected. Monetary policies are expected to remain very loose for the foreseeable future, which also helps stock markets.
The Greggs share price has been on a roll recently as optimism for an economic recovery grows as restrictions are expected to be eased in the weeks and months to come. The lockdowns took a heavy toll on the group. Annual sales were £ 811.3million, down more than 30% on the year, the company suffered a pre-tax loss of almost £ 14million – which included government support in the form of corporate tariff relief and employee retention program. The company confirmed that sales improved in the second half of the year, on top of that, sales were better than expected in 2021. The delivery side of the business, which is carried out by Just Eat, accounted for over 9% comparable sales in the first ten weeks of this year. Greggs has a healthy cash position and can draw on a £ 100million loan as well, so he is well positioned to take advantage of pent-up demand which is expected to be released when restrictions are relaxed.
The FCA has launched an investigation into NatWest into an allegation of money laundering. Between 2011 and 2016, a customer of the bank deposited £ 365million, the majority of which was cash deposits. The regulator believes that NatWest’s internal anti-money laundering systems should have flagged the transactions, hence the reason the regulator opened the investigation. Part of the reason RBS was rebranded as NatWest Group was to distance itself from the bad old days, the government bailout and the LIBOR-rigging scandal, but the bank may have a few more ghosts in the closet.
AstraZeneca has received a lot of negative publicity in recent days, but you wouldn’t know it if you look at the stock price. A growing number of European countries have halted the distribution of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine because respective health authorities fear the vaccine may be linked to patients developing blood clots. The dealers may be ignoring the news because the WHO as well as the European Medicines Agency have reiterated their view that the vaccination in question is safe.
4imprint is a marketing group, its operations have been hit hard amid the tight restrictions, on top of that demand has also been reduced. Annual revenues fell 35% to $ 560 million, while profit before tax fell nearly 93%. It was a painful 12 month for the group but the fourth was relatively strong. There are reasons for optimism as there has been a marked increase in business momentum over the past three weeks.
Volkswagen shares are up on this day as the automaker believes it can cut costs and increase profits. The German group is optimistic about its plans for the electric vehicle market.
we
The NASDAQ 100 outperforms major US indices and the technology component of the S&P 500 helps the index outperform the Dow Jones. It seems traders are looking for relatively cheap tech stocks today, given that they have fallen the most over the past month.
The United States released mixed retail sales data as the February report showed a 3% contraction, well below the -0.5% expected by economists. On the other hand, January’s stellar reading of 5.3% has been revised to 7.6%. When you take an average of the two updates, it always gives a positive picture of consumer appetite. Given that the January report was heavily influenced by the $ 900 billion spending program that was introduced in late December, it seems likely that future reports will reflect the $ 1.9 trillion stimulus package.
Moderna shares are higher this afternoon as the pharmaceutical company conducts a study on testing its Covid-19 vaccine on children. Moderna’s vaccination for adults has an effectiveness rate of over 94% and he is keen to replicate that success with the medicine for children. The drugmaker intends to enroll approximately 6,750 children from the United States and Canada into the study.
Following the close of trading, CrowdStrike will release its fourth quarter results. The cybersecurity group posted record third quarter numbers in December. Year-over-year subscription revenue jumped 87%. Revenue was $ 232.5 million, ahead of the consensus estimate of $ 213.5 million. EPS was 8 cents, easily exceeding the expected breakeven point.
Less than a week ago GameStop was trading above $ 300 and today it is now below $ 200, down more than 10% on the session as it continues to be volatile.
FX
The foreign exchange market has today experienced low volatility. The US dollar index was boosted by mixed retail sales data, the greenback is still up on the session. Over the past two months, the dollar has been in an uptrend and a break above last week’s highs should pave the way for further gains. Tomorrow night, the Federal Reserve will announce its rate decision, no policy changes are expected but comments on yields will be closely watched. The 10-year yield has cooled, but recently broke the 1.63% mark – a 13-month high – which has sparked discussion about rate hikes.
The CMC JPY index and the CMC CHF index are the best performers today, suggesting that dealers are in a risk-free mode, but then again, this could be a case of bargain hunting given that the franc Swiss and Japanese yen suffered sell-offs. offs recently.
Basic products
Gold briefly hit its highest level in two weeks. The relatively subdued dollar is playing in gold’s favor, as the strength of the greenback in recent weeks was a big factor in gold’s drop to a nine-month low earlier this month. The metal is now in the red, and there will likely be low volatility by the time the Fed meets tomorrow night.
WTI and Brent crude oil are in the red this afternoon as traders want to reduce their exposure to the oil market as there are slight concerns about the eurozone’s economic recovery that could be hampered by the suspension of the vaccine distribution. It is worth noting that oil hit 14 months last week, so some traders do not hesitate to use any excuse to make a profit.
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