- Bridgette Randall
- 04 Jan, 2023
- Frankfurt
European markets closed higher for the third day in a row after inflation unexpectedly fell in France.
Market sentiment was positive after inflation in France declined matching the recent weakening of inflation in Spain and Germany. Though inflation eased the price pressure remained elevated.
Moreover, Germany's import inflation also eased, supporting further market advance in the session today.
France's December Inflation Eased
Harmonized inflation rate declined to 6.7% in December from 7.1% in November, France's statistical agency INSEE said Wednesday.
Inflation, when measured on the consumer price index, declined to 5.9% in December from 6.2% in November.
Spain's harmonized inflation declined to 5.6% in December from 6.6% in November and Germany's inflation dropped to 9.6% from 11.3% in the previous month.
Germany's Import Price Inflation Dropped In November
Germany's import price inflation declined in November to 14.5% from 23.5% in October, data from Destatis or Federal Statistics Office showed Wednesday.
Elevated energy prices drove the inflation in the month.
Energy import prices rose 37.9% in November and non-energy imports increased 9.7% from a year ago and rose 0.7% from the previous month.
Import prices declined for the third month in a row and prices fell 4.5% in November after dropping 1.2% in October.
Export price inflation also rose but at a slower pace in November and price increase slowed to 11.6% from 13.6% in October.
On a monthly basis, export prices decreased 0.5% after falling 1.9% in October.
Swiss Inflation Accelerated In 2022
Swiss Inflation surged in 2022 after energy prices and housing costs rebounded, according to the latest data from the Federal Statistics Office.
Average annual consumer price index inflation increased to 2.8% in 2022 from 0.6% in 2021 and rebounded from the decline of 0.6% in 2020.
in 2022, the price of goods produced domestically rose 1.6% and imported goods surged 6.7%.
Price inflation slowed in December to 2.8% from 3.0% rise in November.
The prices continued to rise in 2022 and peaked at 8.5% in August and December inflation dropped to the lowest level seen eight months ago.
European Market Indexes Advanced 3rd Day In a Row
The DAX index increased 2.2% to 14,490.78, the CAC-40 index jumped 2.3% to 6,776.43 and the FTSE 100 index added 0.4% to 7,585.19.
Brent crude oil decreased 5.1% or $4.10 to $77.93 a barrel and Dutch TTF natural gas futures plunged 10% to
- Brian Turner
- 04 Jan, 2023
- New York City
Federal Reserve policymakers sent a strong signal that a slowdown in rate increase does not show the central bank's commitment from waking away from its commitment in bringing down inflation.
The December minutes of meeting showed the support for the continuation of the policymakers' hawkish stance against elevated inflation and the need for the rates to rise to restrictive level.
The policy committee members supported to continue to increase its holdings of Treasury securities by at least $80 billion per month and agency MBS by at least $40 billion per month "until substantial further progress had been made toward the Committee's maximum employment and price stability goals."
- Brian Turner
- 04 Jan, 2023
- New York City
Mortgage applications dropped 13.2% from two weeks earlier in the week ending in December according to the latest survey released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 13.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from two weeks earlier.
On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 39.4 percent compared with the two weeks ago
- Brian Turner
- 04 Jan, 2023
- New York City
Job openings in the U.S. fell slightly in November, indicating the job market strength, according to the latest data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Job openings in November declined 54,000 to 10.5 million and have slowly eased after hitting 11.9million peak in March.
Over the month, the number of hires and total separations changed little at 6.1 million and 5.9 million, respectively.
- Scott Peters
- 04 Jan, 2023
- New York City
China-linked stocks were in focus again today on the ongoing speculation on the rebound in business and travel activities after the abrupt ending of zero-covid restrictions.
Tesla Inc rose 3.3% to $111.49 on the hopes that China sales will revive soon. The company also extended 10,000 yuan ($1,388) offered in the last two weeks for vehicles made in Shanghai till the end of January.
China's economic growth has dropped to its lowest pace in decades after the flare-up of Covid-infections and steep job losses in the tech sector.
In the first 11 months to November, Tesla delivered 390,000 Model 3 and model Y vehicles, a 22% jump from full-year 2021 sales of 321,000 vehicles.
China also ended its cash subsidy from the beginning of 2023 as electric vehicle sales jumped to 6.4 million in 2022 from 2.99 million in 2021 according to the China Passenger Car Association.
Rivian Automotive fell 0.2% to $17.37 after the electric vehicle maker missed its production target.
Casino operators Las Vegas Sands Corp, MGM Resorts and Wynn Resorts Limited soared between 5% and 6% on the hopes of a rebound in travel in China.
Salesforce Inc increased 3.4% to $139.46 after the software company said it plans to eliminate 10% of its staff and also reduce office space as part of its restructuring plan.
The company plans to take a charge between $1.0 billion and $1.4 billion related to staff trimming and an additional charge between $450 million and $650 million related to office space reduction.
The cloud-based software developer employed about 79,000 people and let go of less than 1,000 people in November.
Carnival Cruise Corp increased 8.6% to $8.99 after the company said it plans to raise prices from April 1 following the price increase by Norwegian Cruise from Jan 1.
Microsoft Corp fell 4.9% to $227.21 after UBS lowered its stock rating to "neutral" from "buy" citing potential slowdown concerns in its Office and Azure business units.
General Electric gained 3.6% to $68.71 after the company spun off its healthcare unit today.
GE Healthcare Technologies jumped 3.4% to $58.10 on the first day of trading.
In 2021, General Electric announced its plan to spin off its energy unit in 2024 and healthcare unit in 2022 and focus on its aviation business.
Coinbase Global jumped 13.7% to $38.22 after the company entered into a settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services and agreed to pay a penalty of $50 million for prior compliance violations.
The cryptocurrency exchange also agreed to invest additional $50 million in additional compliance measures and improvements.
American Airlines, Delta Air and United Airlines increased between 5% and 6% after crude oil prices fell near one-year low.
- Barry Adams
- 04 Jan, 2023
- New York City
Stocks struggled on the second day of trading this week and investors weighed the labor market strength against the Fed-induced economic slowdown worries.
Tech stocks continued to drift lower on the worries that the rising rates will negatively impact future earnings and energy stocks traded lower after crude oil prices slumped towards a one-year low.
Investors lowered goods inflation expectations after the crude oil and natural gas prices eased for the second week in a row but the labor market strength also raised concerns that inflation in wages and salaries may not subside soon.
Indexes In Review
Two popular benchmark indexes struggled to get traction after latest job data indicated strong labor market conditions but mortgage applications dropped to the lowest level since 1996.
The S&P 500 index rose 0.45% to 3,841.49 and the Nasdaq Composite index increased 0.3% to 10,420.01.
Crude Oil and Natural Gas Fall
Crude oil prices fell for the second week in a row amid the rising supply and falling demand growth.
Brent crude dropped near the one-year of $75.60 a barrel low last seen on December 9th on warmer than expected weather in Europe.
WTI crude future for the immediate month delivery also fell near the one-year low $70.30 a barrel reached on December 9.
WTI crude oil declined 4% or $3.08 to $73.88 a barrel and natural gas rose 1.8% or 6 cents to $4.05 a thermal unit.
Treasury Yields Eased Again
The yields on U.S. treasury bonds continued to drift lower as investors piled into government securities on the expectations that the Federal Reserve Bank will gradually slow its future rate hikes.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.37% and 10-year Treasury notes fell to 3.70% and 30-year Treasury bonds dropped to 3.81%.
U.S. Stock Movers
China-linked stocks were in focus again today on the ongoing speculation on the rebound in business and travel activities after the abrupt ending of zero-covid restrictions.
Tesla rose 3.3% to $111.49 on the hopes that China sales will revive soon. The company also extended 10,000 yuan ($1,388) offered in the last two weeks for vehicles made in Shanghai till the end of January.
China's economic growth has dropped to its lowest pace in decades after the flare-up of Covid-infections and steep job losses in the tech sector.
Rivian Automotive fell 0.2% to $17.37 after the electric vehicle maker missed its production target.
Job Opening Eased In November
Job openings in the U.S. fell slightly in November, indicating the job market strength, according to the latest data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Job openings in November declined 54,000 to 10.5 million and have slowly eased after hitting 11.9million peak in March.
Over the month, the number of hires and total separations changed little at 6.1 million and 5.9 million, respectively.
Mortgage Applications Down to 26-year Low
Mortgage applications dropped 13.2% from two weeks earlier in the week ending in December according to the latest survey released by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 13.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from two weeks earlier.
On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 39.4 percent compared with the two weeks ago
- Arjun Pandit
- 04 Jan, 2023
- Mumbai
The Nikkei index in Tokyo plunged 1.45% to 25,716.86 after investors returned from a long holiday weekend and reacted cautiously to the upcoming release of the U.S. Federal Reserve's minutes of meeting later in the day.
Oil exploration companies led the decliners after crude oil continued its slide towards the one-year low. Shipping companies also were among the leading losers on the worries of falling international trade.
Nippon Yusen dropped 6.5% to
- Bridgette Randall
- 03 Jan, 2023
- Frankfurt
European markets opened higher and extended previous session's gains on the earnings optimism.
Investors welcomed the easing of inflation in Germany and the expectations of inflation peaking in France and a steady job market in Germany.
German Inflation Edged Lower, Jobless Rate Held Steady
Germany's Consumer Price Index increase slowed to an annual pace of 8.6% in December from 10.0% in November, the Federal Statistics Office said Tuesday.
November's seasonally adjusted jobless rate held steady at 3.0% in Germany according to the official data released by the agency.
The number of people out of work fell by 6,500 from the previous month to 1.32 million.
The seasonally adjusted number of persons in employment rose 45,000 in November from October when the labor market expanded by 32,000.
From a year ago, the seasonally adjusted jobs increased 1.0% or 472,000, matching the 1.1% rate or the gain of 476,000 in October.
French Inflation Expected to Peak In Early 2023
Inflation in France is expected to peak in the early 2023 before retreating, said French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne to a local radio station.
China Worries Persist
Despite the positive mood in trading, investors were cautious on the rapidly spreading Covid-virus in China.
Moreover, investors took note of the falling manufacturing activities in China.
The Chinese economy continues to struggle with the rapid spread of a highly infectious and deadly variant of coronavirus.
The Chinese manufacturing activities growth contracted for the fourth month in a row according to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.
A private survey showed China's manufacturing output growth contracted for the fifth month in a row, a second report confirming the weakening trend in China.
Moreover, the IMF also said that China's economic growth is likely to be near or below the average global growth for the first time in four decades.
U.S. Coronavirus Infections Rise
The number of hospitalized patients with Covid continues to rise in the United States.
The latest survey data released by the New York Times showed that 15% of patients subjected to Covid tests are diagnosed with coronavirus in the last two week and the highest in several months.
U.S. hospitals reported an 8% increase in the number of patients with Covid and 11% rise in the number patients admitted to intensive care units.
U.S. Construction Activities Expand
U.S. construction spending rose 0.2% in November from the downwardly revised 0.2% fall in October, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Wednesday.
Indexes In Review
The DAX index increased 0.8% to 14,181.67, the CAC-40 index rose 0.4% to 6,623.89 and the FTSE 100 index advanced 1.4% to 7,554.09.
Brent crude oil prices declined $3.53 to $82.47 a barrel and Dutch TTF natural gas futures dropped 6.1% to $72.31 a thermal unit.
The yield on 10-year German Bunds edged lower to 2.37%, French bonds dropped to 2.92%, UK Gilts to 3.65% and Italian bonds fell to 4.50%.
European Stock Movers
Energy companies were in focus after crude oil jumped higher in the early trading.
BP Plc gained 4.4% and Shell advanced 4.1% despite the ongoing global demand worries and slow rebound in activities in China.
Brenntag SE increased 6.4% to