Evolution of the international financial markets and evaluation of the main events and economic indicators of the previous day session. Available in English.
In the last session of the week, better-than-expected PMI data failed to boost sentiment, as investors remained focused on feeble corporate results and on the hawkish shift from central banks. On Sunday, Emmanuel Macron won the second round of the French Presidential elections with 58.6% of the votes.
During a volatile session, markets closed with mixed results, as investors digested a mix of hawkish comments by central bank officials, upbeat corporate earnings reports, positive macro data (e.g. consumer confidence in the eurozone) and a good showing by incumbent French President Macron at a TV debate against FN Le Pen.
Volatility continued to rein in financial markets on Wednesday, as investors took on board hawkish comments from central bank officials and the decision by the Chinese authorities to keep the benchmark lending rates unchanged.
Financial markets started the week with mixed results, as investors weighted out positive corporate earnings results with downward revisions in the growth economic outlook and a new round of hawkish commentary by some Fed officials (Charles Evans from the Chicago Fed and James Bullard from St. Louis).
Investors started the week with no clear direction, as traders digested mixed signals from the GDP data in China and corporate results in the US. Financial markets were closed across Europe, Australia and Hong Kong.
In yesterday's session, investors traded with mixed optimism as they continued to digest inflation data for the US, which might have peaked in March. On monetary policy, the Bank of Canada hiked rates by 50bp to 1% and said it would allow bonds to roll off as they mature. Today's focus will be on the ECB meeting.
In yesterday's session, inflationary concerns continued to be the main driver for investors. While markets initially received positively the March IPC for the US (8.5% y/y for the headline and 6.5% for the core), the pickup in oil prices and hawkish comments by some Fed officials led to a worsening of investor's sentiment.
Investors started the week trading with a risk-off sentiment, still digesting the hawkish comments from the US Federal Reserve and ahead for March’s US CPI inflation data, to be released today.
Investors ended the week with cautious optimism, with equity indices rising across Europe and emerging markets but with mixed results in the US. Bank shares continued to outperform, reflecting expectations of a more aggressive interest rate normalization in advanced economies.
Another session dominated by risk aversion, as investors continued to digest the hawkish rhetoric from central banks in major advanced economies and mixed signals from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Sentiment deteriorated across financial markets on Wednesday, as investors digested the hawkish narrative in the accounts of the Fed’s latest meeting and the likely new imposition of sanctions against Russia.