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: GBP Retail Sales m/m @ 08.30 GMT
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING TODAY
As UK Retail Sales Show Easter Rebound, Will Carney Reconsider Policy?
UK retail sales is set for release early today. Data from the Confederation of British Industry shows that retail sales bounced back this month after a weak March, helped by sales from a later than usual Easter. With the current economic situation in the UK looking up, an upside surprise could raise expectations of policy tightening, and in turn, the strength of the sterling. Twelve months ago, the International Monetary Fund announced a UK growth forecast of 1.5% for 2014. At the beginning of this month, the IMF revised its estimate to 2.9% in 2014, making the UK the fastest growing economy in the G7. Data releases have compounded improving expectations, with production, trade balance and unemployment data all beating forecasts over the past two to three weeks, and the market is eagerly anticipating a potential near term interest rate hike. The latest MPC meeting minutes dampened these expectations somewhat, but if data continues to impress the BoE would likely have no choice than to consider some sort of policy tightening. For this reason, the market is watching the UK headline releases with a renewed focus.
Asian Shares & U.S. Dollar Struggle As Ukraine Tensions Escalate
Asian stocks struggled today, with fears of an escalating Ukraine crisis overshadowing upbeat U.S. economic data and U.S. tech shares. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan erased early modest gains and fell 0.3 percent. Japan’s Nikkei stock on the other hand, added 0.5 percent in choppy trade, after opening solidly lower amid disappointment over a failed attempt to reach a U.S.-Japan trade pact. On Wall Street overnight, stocks managed to shrug off the rising Ukraine tensions after Apple and Facebook posted upbeat results on Wednesday and U.S. economic data suggested that growth picked up pace in the second quarter. While brighter U.S. stocks and upbeat data supported the greenback, it still fell against a basket of major currencies, with the dollar index edging down to 79.760. But the U.S. dollar took back some lost ground against the yen, adding about 0.1 percent to 102.42 yen, while the euro also rose 0.1 percent against its Japanese counterpart to 141.65 yen. Against the dollar, the euro was steady on the day at $1.3832, despite comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi repeating recent concerns about euro strength and the ECB’s willingness to launch a “broad-based asset purchase program” if low inflation become entrenched.
Facebook’s Success In Mobile Continues To Soar
Facebook reported on Wednesday that it had made $2.5 billion in revenue in the previous three months and that it now has almost half the world’s Internet population logging in at least once a month. More than a billion people access the site monthly via mobile devices. The company is also doing better than expected when it comes to making money from mobile ads. For now, at least, its mobile ad business seems immune to the seasonal shifts in its desktop ad sales. The growth of mobile advertising has been explosive. Traders take note!
That sums up Friday’s highlights! Keep up to date with our regular posts on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ & LinkedIn today and over the weekend!
We hope you have a profitable day on the markets.
