europe stocks today Archives

1. Stocks Slip After Record Rally; Oil Retreats

U.S. futures slipped and European stocks steadied on the last day of the month after a record-breaking rally in global equity markets. Oil extended a retreat on signs of discord among OPEC+ ministers. The rotation that sent stocks to all-time highs showed signs of a slight reversal, with technology companies holding firm, while small-caps, banks and energy producers were broadly lower. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index sank 1.6%, the biggest loss in a month. Investors have become cautious after big gains in the last few weeks that were driven by the vaccine news.

Futures on the S&P 500 Index declined 0.5% as of early morning London time.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was little changed.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 1.6%.

The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 1.3%.

2. OPEC+ Heads Into Crucial Talks Still Split Over Output Plans

OPEC and its allies headed into a two-day meeting with ministers still split on plans to delay a production boost, after failing to reach consensus in talks on Sunday night. The 23-nation coalition led by Saudi Arabia and Russia is debating whether to maintain the output cuts at current levels, deferring the increase scheduled for January. Some members are concerned that global markets remain too fragile to absorb additional barrels, while others are keen to sell more crude.

3. London in Deep Trouble as Brexit Finance Deal Unlikely

The golden age of the City of London began with a big bang. It’s ending with a whimper. Fears that the finance powerhouse that emerged from Margaret Thatcher’s 1986 deregulation — known as the Big Bang – will gradually be dismantled have deepened with a recent flurry of announcements about some business heading to the European Union as Britain enters the last month of the Brexit transition period without a financial-services deal in sight. The latest shift comes Monday at 8 a.m. when London Stock Exchange’s stock trading platform Turquoise Europe goes live in Amsterdam. It joins other trading venues like Cboe Europe and Aquis Exchange setting up shop on the continent as part of their no-deal Brexit plans.

4. China Says Its Grain Imports Not to Blame for Global Price Surge

A Chinese government official rebuffed the idea that the nation’s massive corn and wheat imports are to blame for the jump in international prices, saying the coronavirus pandemic and uncertainty in global food trade drove “panic” in the industry. Grain prices have risen because of export restrictions by major suppliers and the stockpiling of food reserves by some countries. China’s grain imports only account for a 10th of global trade, with the majority being soybeans, and have a limited impact on international food prices. Crop prices have been on a rise as China’s buying gained pace in recent months amid tighter-than-expected world grain and oilseed supplies. The second-biggest economy surpassed for the first time ever an annual corn-import quota set by the World Trade Organization as purchases in October hit a record high.

5. Iran Pledges Payback at ‘Right’ Time Over Scientist Killing

President Hassan Rouhani said Iran will respond to the killing of its top nuclear scientist “when the time is right,” and accused Israel of an “act of terrorism” in a significant escalation of tensions in the Persian Gulf. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a senior nuclear scientist working for the Ministry of Defense, was assassinated Friday in a shootout and car bombing on the outskirts of Tehran. Promising “severe revenge,” officials also pointed the finger at the U.S., potentially complicating President-elect Joe Biden’s bid to revive the Iranian nuclear deal.

6. U.K. Mortgage Approvals Unexpectedly Jump to 13-Year High

U.K. mortgage approvals jumped to the highest since before the financial crisis in October as buyers rushed to take advantage of tax incentives. Lenders approved 97,532 loans in October, the most since 2007, the Bank of England said Monday. Net consumer credit fell by 590 million pounds (INR 5800 cr) as households paid down debt, mostly on credit cards. The housing market is defying a broader economic downturn because of pent-up demand from the Covid lockdowns and a temporary tax break on home purchases. The BOE expects the unemployment rate to climb higher than 7% next year from the current 4.8%. Economic output won’t recover to pre-pandemic levels until 2022, the central bank’s latest forecasts show.

7. ABN Amro to Cut About 2,800 Jobs as Investment Bank Shrinks

ABN Amro Bank plans to cut about 2,800 jobs over four years as the Dutch lender retreats from large parts of its investment bank and digitization allows it to operate with a smaller staff. The company plans to reduce costs by about $840 million (INR 6200 cr) by 2024. The workforce will shrink by about 15%, with most reductions to start in 2022, Chief Executive Officer Robert Swaak said in an investor update on Monday. In August, Swaak announced plans to cut a third of the lender’s business with corporate clients, dropping company finance outside of Europe and exiting trade and commodity financing altogether.

8. Cyber Monday Projected to Hit Pandemic-Fueled $12.7 Billion in Sales

Online shoppers in the U.S. are expected to drop a record-busting $12.7 billion (INR 94,000 cr) on Cyber Monday — the busiest e-commerce day of the year — presenting a valuable opportunity for retailers whose websites, customer service departments and delivery operations can withstand the period of crushing traffic. Amazon.com, Walmart, Target, Best Buy and others have been preparing for the 2020 holiday season for months. This week will be the ultimate test for their new investments in ramping up delivery capacity and adding features like parking lot pickup for digital orders. The Covid-19 surge kept crowd-averse shoppers away from physical malls on Black Friday, reinforcing predictions that online shopping will soar this year. Adobe Analytics predicts that Cyber Monday spending for 2020 will climb by 35% – more than double the growth rate in the years prior to the pandemic. That also means that any service interruptions on Cyber Monday — slow websites, payment processing problems, shopping carts that vanish before checkout – could be painful for companies.

9. China Oil Giant CNOOC Targeted by U.S. After Years of South China Sea Tension

China’s third-biggest oil company faces a U.S. blacklist, which could spur major outflows from its Hong Kong-listed unit, after years of involvement in offshore drilling in disputed South China Sea waters. China National Offshore Oil Corp., the nation’s main deepwater explorer, is among four companies to be added to a list of firms owned or controlled by the Chinese military. The move comes as the Trump administration plans several new hard-line moves against Beijing in the final weeks of its term. CNOOC hasn’t yet received any official notice or decision from any relevant U.S. government agency, the firm’s listed unit said in an exchange filing in Hong Kong.

10. China’s factories crank up output, but jobs, debt remain concerns

China’s factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in more than three years in November, while growth in the services sector also hit a multi-year high, as the country’s economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic stepped up. Upbeat data released on Monday suggest the world’s second-largest economy is on track to become the first to completely shake off the drag from widespread industry shutdowns, with recent production data showing manufacturing now at pre-pandemic levels. But companies are still not expanding their payrolls, the figures show, and some analysts point to rising debt levels among state-owned firms as another possible headwind for the economy.

1. Cyclicals Lead Global Stocks Higher; Dollar Drops

Cyclical companies are powering global equities higher for a second day as investors cheered the start of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s formal transition and the prospect for more economic stimulus. Futures on the S&P 500 outpaced contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq as investors doubled down on economically sensitive sectors such as travel and energy. Oil and gas shares led the Stoxx 600 Index higher. EasyJet and International Consolidated Airlines Group SA rose after England planned to cut its quarantine period for arrivals from high-risk countries.

Futures on the S&P 500 Index rose 0.8% as of early morning New York time.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.6%.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.9%.

The MSCI Emerging Market Index was little changed.

2. Bitcoin Pierces $19,000 for First Time Since 2017

Bitcoin surpassed $19,000 (INR 14 lakh) for the first time since 2017 as the mania over digital currencies continues to grip Wall Street. Bitcoin climbed as high as $19,103 before paring the advance, trading up 2.2%. Prices are approaching an all-time high with many pointing to the wider acceptance of cryptocurrencies among traditional investors as the catalyst behind the surge. PayPal Holding Inc.’s October decision to allow customers to access cryptocurrencies led the coin to spike above $13,000 for the first time in over a year. And Fidelity Investments launched a Bitcoin fund over the summer.

3. Elon Musk Overtakes Bill Gates to Grab World’s Second-Richest Ranking

Elon Musk’s year of dizzying ascents hit a new apex Monday as the Tesla co-founder passed Bill Gates to become the world’s second-richest person. The 49-year-old entrepreneur’s net worth soared from $7.2 billion to $127.9 billion (INR 9.5 lakh cr), driven by yet another surge in Tesla’s share price. In January he ranked 35th. His advance up the wealth ranks has been driven largely by Tesla, whose market value is approaching $500 billion. About three-quarters of his net worth consists of Tesla shares, which are valued more than four times as much as his stake in Space Exploration Technologies Corp., or SpaceX.

4. Biden Begins Formal Transition After Trump Yields on GSA Process

President-elect Joe Biden and his team will begin to delve into Donald Trump’s coronavirus vaccine planning and assess the condition of federal agencies after the president relented and allowed the transition planning to begin. After weeks of inaction, the chief of the General Services administration acknowledged Monday that Biden was the “apparent winner” of the Nov. 3 election. The shift came after the key swing state of Michigan certified Biden as the winner, at least nine Republican senators called for the transition to begin and the Trump legal team suffered fresh setbacks.

5. UAE Allows Full Foreign Ownership of Firms to Boost Economy

The United Arab Emirates abolished the need for companies to have Emirati shareholders, in a major shake-up of foreign ownership laws aimed at attracting investment into an economy reeling from the coronavirus and a decline in oil prices. The amendments to the 2015 commercial companies’ law remove key provisions requiring that a company be chaired by an Emirati national and for the board of directors to be majority Emirati, citing changes issued by the country’s president. The rules come into effect on Dec. 1 and are the latest in a series of measures aimed at liberalizing business activity in the UAE, where foreigners comprise more than 80% of the population. The amendments are designed to reduce costs for companies and attract foreign entrepreneurs often put off by regulations demanding they hand 51% of their business to locals in order to operate onshore.

6. Millions of Americans Expect to Lose Their Homes as Covid Rages

Millions of Americans expect to face eviction by the end of this year, adding to the suffering inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic raging across the U.S. About 58 lakh adults say they are somewhat very likely to face eviction or foreclosure in the next two months, according to a survey completed Nov. 9 by the U.S. Census Bureau. The CARES Act, signed into law last March, allows homeowners to pause mortgage payments for up to a year if they experience hardship as a result of the pandemic. Borrowers who signed up at the start of the program could face foreclosure by March. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s nationwide temporary suspension on evictions — aimed at stemming the spread of coronavirus — is slated to end Dec. 31. The timing is far from ideal given millions of people are also set to lose their unemployment benefits at year-end without an extension from Congress.

7. Boris Johnson Ends England Lockdown But Tougher Regional Rules Follow

Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed England’s national lockdown will end next week, to be replaced by a tougher three-tier system of regional restrictions designed to last until spring next year. Ministers are drawing up plans to allow rules to be relaxed across the U.K. in time for Christmas and Johnson said if all goes well with the roll-out of vaccines, “the vast majority” of people who need a shot will get one by April. Under the new rules for England, from Dec. 2 shops, hairdressers and gyms will reopen across the country, but bars and restaurants will be take-away only in areas under the tightest restrictions. The government will announce on Thursday which tiers regions are being placed in after looking at the latest data on infections.

8. Xiaomi’s Sales Grows Fastest in Two Years After Huawei Slide

Xiaomi posted its fastest pace of revenue growth in more than two years after the Chinese smartphone giant grabbed market share from Huawei when American sanctions deepened. China’s No. 2 smartphone name reported a stronger-than-anticipated 34.5% rise in sales in the September quarter. More than half of that originated beyond its home country for the first time as Xiaomi took advantage of Huawei’s retreat to delve deeper into markets from Western Europe to India, where it widened its lead. The company has been among the biggest beneficiaries of the Trump administration’s campaign to ban Huawei and contain China’s technological ascendancy.

9. Russian COVID-19 vaccine to cost less than $20, free for citizens

Russia’s two-shot Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine will cost less than $20 per person on international markets and will be free of charge for Russian citizens, according to a statement on the official Sputnik V Twitter account. Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s RDIF sovereign wealth fund, told the Reuters news agency Sputnik V earlier on Tuesday that it would be priced significantly lower than rivals with similar efficacy levels. Sputnik V vaccine is 95 percent effective according to second interim analysis of clinical trial data, developers say.

10. Japan and China Agree to Restart Two-way Travel by End November

The foreign ministers of China and Japan agreed at a meeting in Tokyo to lift some virus-related travel restrictions by the end of the month, while also re-stating their differences over disputed islands in the East China Sea. Foreign Minister Wang Yi is the first senior Chinese official to visit Japan since Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga took office in September. The two men are set to meet Wednesday, as China seeks to recalibrate its ties with key American allies ahead of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration next year. Suga, who has little experience of diplomacy, must strike a delicate balance between the U.S., Japan’s only formal military ally, and China, its biggest trading partner.

Curated from Bloomberg.com