Here’s today’s ‘Just A Minute’ bringing you a 60 second summary of what’s happening in the financial markets:
Main Trading Event Of The Day: USD Building Permits @ 12.30 GMT
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING TODAY
U.S. Building Permits: Set To Rise?
With Building Permits data expected later today, investors are anticipating numbers that will show American housing and industrial activity increased. European stock-index futures rose, after equities fell yesterday to a three-week low, while Asian shares climbed. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index also dropped 1 percent yesterday as Ukraine accused Russia of deploying troops inside its territory. Reports are expected to show housing starts rebounded to a 970,000 annualised pace in March, the first increase in four months, from a 907,000 rate in the previous month, according economists at Bloomberg. Separate data may show industrial production increased in March. Also today, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen will address the Economic Club of New York after the close of European markets while the U.S. central bank will release its economic survey known as the Beige Book.
USD Building Permits Today @ 12.30 GMT
Gold Extends Decline On Prospects For Further Fed Tapering
Gold retreated once again, extending the biggest drop in three weeks, on prospects for further cuts to the Federal Reserve’s stimulus program as the U.S economy shows signs of recovery. Gold traded at $1,300.31 slumping 1.9 percent yesterday, the most since March 24. The precious metal ended a 12-year bull run in 2013 on expectations that the Fed would cut stimulus as the largest economy recovered. Bullion has rebounded 8.2 percent this year as unrest in Ukraine spurred haven demand. In an escalation of the conflict, Ukrainian troops retook state buildings from armed pro-Russia activists in the eastern Donetsk region yesterday as Russia warned of a civil war.
Twitter Shares Take Flight After Key Hire, Acquisition
Shares of Twitter closed up nearly 12 percent Tuesday after the company said it was buying Gnip, a start-up that it has worked closely with. The company also announced a key hire, Daniel Graf from Google, who ran Google Maps. Graf will be vice president of consumer products. Buying Gnip shows that Twitter is investing more heavily in enterprise services. Gnip is one of the few companies that has access to Twitter’s “Firehose,” meaning all the data generated by millions of tweets, every day, in real time. The company then mines the data for trends or information that might be useful to other companies. The buyout means the two companies will have a much closer relationship and signals where the company sees its strategy going forward.
That sums up today’s highlights! We hope you have a profitable day on the markets.
