U.S markets declined as traders assessed a mix of data and speeches from FOMC members. Building Permits came out at 1.039 million when predicted to be 1.080 million; they also posted a decline of 5.7%. Housing Starts missed expectations and came out at 0.926 million when analysts had predicted to see them climb by 1.040 million; overall starts increased by just 2% in March but were predicted to climb by 15.9%. In addition, Initial Jobless Claims were higher than expected at 294K. On the positive side, the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index came out at 7.5 which was better than the expected figure of 6; this shows stronger improvement than expected. Later in the day there were several speeches from FOMC members. Lockhart kicked off the talks and was relatively dovish. He spoke about weakness in the economy during the first quarter and stated that improved employment and inflation will be essential for the increase. Overall he noted that “A murky economic picture is not an ideal circumstance for making a major policy decision.” Mester, however, held a different stance and assured investors that the economy has improved and has reached a point where the risk of delaying tightening could outweigh the benefits of keep rates low. He also stated that he would be comfortable with a liftoff ‘fairly soon’. At session close the S&P 500 declined to 2,104.99 and the Dow Jones declined to 18,105.77.Netflix rallied 18% following reports that 4.88 million subscribers joined in the first quarter. Other movers were Citigroup which added 1.5% after beating expectations and Walt Disney which added 1.1% with the release of their new Star Wars trailer.
Asian markets were mostly lower today. The Nikkei lost 1.17% as the Dollar continued to trade low against the Yen; the Dollar was trading at 118.8 at session close. Sentiment was hit by losses on Wall Street and concerns over the upcoming earnings reports as revenue may be affected by the stronger Yen. Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings left 9.24%, Alps Electric Co lost 6.06% and J Front Retailing lost 5.87%. The Hang Seng lost 0.31% due to news that share supplies increased as fund managers lent stocks for short selling. The index added 8% last week alone and so investor appetite cooled off. Bank of China lost 2.54%, China Construction Bank lost 2.44% and China Resources Power Holdings lost 2.38%.
European markets are lower today following data. The CPI was released and was expected to climb slightly due to the recent stimulus injection. The figure, however, came out on target and decline by 0.15. Attention also remains on Greece as they appear to be no closer to making an agreement with their creditors. Currently, the FTSE 100 is 0.99% lower, the CAC 40 is 1.53% lower and the DAX is 1.84% lower. In the FTSE, St James Place is down 2.92%, Anglo American is down 2.79% and GKN is down 2.64%. In the DAX, all members are currently in the red with Deutsche bank down 2.68%, Commerzbank down 2.57% and adidas down 2.5%.
April 17, 2015 – Indices News
U.S markets declined as traders assessed a mix of data and speeches from FOMC members. Building Permits came out at 1.039 million when predicted to be 1.080 million; they also posted a decline of 5.7%. Housing Starts missed expectations and came out at 0.926 million when analysts had predicted to see them climb by 1.040 million; overall starts increased by just 2% in March but were predicted to climb by 15.9%. In addition, Initial Jobless Claims were higher than expected at 294K. On the positive side, the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index came out at 7.5 which was better than the expected figure of 6; this shows stronger improvement than expected. Later in the day there were several speeches from FOMC members. Lockhart kicked off the talks and was relatively dovish. He spoke about weakness in the economy during the first quarter and stated that improved employment and inflation will be essential for the increase. Overall he noted that “A murky economic picture is not an ideal circumstance for making a major policy decision.” Mester, however, held a different stance and assured investors that the economy has improved and has reached a point where the risk of delaying tightening could outweigh the benefits of keep rates low. He also stated that he would be comfortable with a liftoff ‘fairly soon’. At session close the S&P 500 declined to 2,104.99 and the Dow Jones declined to 18,105.77.Netflix rallied 18% following reports that 4.88 million subscribers joined in the first quarter. Other movers were Citigroup which added 1.5% after beating expectations and Walt Disney which added 1.1% with the release of their new Star Wars trailer.
Asian markets were mostly lower today. The Nikkei lost 1.17% as the Dollar continued to trade low against the Yen; the Dollar was trading at 118.8 at session close. Sentiment was hit by losses on Wall Street and concerns over the upcoming earnings reports as revenue may be affected by the stronger Yen. Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings left 9.24%, Alps Electric Co lost 6.06% and J Front Retailing lost 5.87%. The Hang Seng lost 0.31% due to news that share supplies increased as fund managers lent stocks for short selling. The index added 8% last week alone and so investor appetite cooled off. Bank of China lost 2.54%, China Construction Bank lost 2.44% and China Resources Power Holdings lost 2.38%.
European markets are lower today following data. The CPI was released and was expected to climb slightly due to the recent stimulus injection. The figure, however, came out on target and decline by 0.15. Attention also remains on Greece as they appear to be no closer to making an agreement with their creditors. Currently, the FTSE 100 is 0.99% lower, the CAC 40 is 1.53% lower and the DAX is 1.84% lower. In the FTSE, St James Place is down 2.92%, Anglo American is down 2.79% and GKN is down 2.64%. In the DAX, all members are currently in the red with Deutsche bank down 2.68%, Commerzbank down 2.57% and adidas down 2.5%.
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