Investors flew to safe-haven assets in the first session of the week as they reacted to the weekend's drone strike on Saudi Arabia's oil production facilities.
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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.
Financial markets were mixed yesterday. US Treasury yields were flat after the OECD lowered its global growth outlook from 3.1% to 2.9% in 2025, citing concerns over Trump's trade war and its impact on the US economy. JOLTS data showed the resilience of the US labour market in April, while new orders from businesses fell, possibly due to frontloading in Q1.
As expected, the Federal Reserve increased policy interest rates by 25 bp to the range 4.50%-4.75% but surprised by giving a dovish tone, noting that disinflationary pressures have started while the economy is starting to slow. The Fed reiterated that “ongoing increases” on interest rates would still be needed.
Yesterday, global financial markets delivered a mixed performance, shaped by judicial developments in the United States and uneven economic data. In the US, an initial court ruling blocked most of President Trump’s tariffs, only for a federal appeals court to later reinstate them, injecting renewed uncertainty into ongoing trade negotiations.
Investors ended the week with mixed results, balancing out a solid employment report in the US (payrolls rose by 431.000 in March and the jobless rate fell to 3.6%) with upside surprises in inflation in the eurozone (HICP went up by 7.5% y/y in March). Ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine also remained in focus.
Improved sentiment during yesterday's session was driven by optimism on trade talks between the EU and the US, and macroeconomic developments. US consumer confidence strongly rebounded, with the Conference Board index jumping to 98.0 in May from 85.7, and in France, inflation rose 0.6% yoy in May vs. 0.9% expected, and down from 0.9% in April.
Central bank communication remained at the center stage yesterday, as Fed and ECB officials reiterated that monetary policy would need to be restrictive for a while. In the eurozone, GC member Klaas Knot, said the ECB should only decrease the pace of rate hikes once it sees underlying inflation abating, pointing to a 50bp hike in May.
In yesterday’s session, investors traded cautiously, closing with mixed results in the US and in Europe. The lower-than-expected HICP inflation print in Germany (9.2% in January from 9.6%) pushed down yields on sovereign bonds in the euro area (despite the hawkish tone from some ECB officials) and allowed stock indices to increase.
Investors continued to err on the side of caution during a volatile session marked by the release of US CPI inflation for January. The report showed headline CPI rose by 0.5% m/m (+0,1% in December), while the year-on-year rate eased only mildly (6.4% after 6.5% in December), above expectations (6.2% according to Bloomberg).
Risk aversion continued to set the tone across financial markets on Tuesday as investors took position ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting today, with money markets pricing another 75 bp hike in the policy rate.
Global stock markets were mixed yesterday with the main European indices edging down (except for the Portuguese PSI 20 and the Ibex 35) and the S&P gaining 0.2%.
Investors started the week with a risk-on mood, with sentiment supported by easing COVID restrictions in China, including reports that Chinese regulators are relaxing some rules against some tech giants. Data also showed the decline in the Chinese services sector eased in May (the services PMI rose from 36.2 to 41.4).
During a volatile session, financial markets closed the day with no clear direction, with investors taking position ahead of the crucial ECB meeting on Thursday and the release of the US CPI inflation on Friday.
Investor optimism around trade talks led to a moderate risk-on mood at the end of the week. In particular, officials said that sections of the first phase of a trade deal between the U.S. and China are nearly completed.
On Tuesday, the better-than-expected release of February PMIs fueled an increase in investors’ expectations for the path of official interest rates, which, in turn, pushed sovereign bond yields up in the euro area and in the US.
Investors remained trading cautiously yesterday, as they still expect no further tightening of monetary policy and as economic data came in slightly better than expected. In the eurozone, the consumer sentiment indicator rose slightly from -17.8 to -16.9 in November, although it remains at quite a low level.
In the latest session, investor caution prevailed amid lingering concerns over the profitability of AI, a somewhat more hawkish tone from the Fed, and an escalation of tensions between the US and Iran.
Financial markets ended the week with a positive tone as investors perceived that a partial trade deal between the U.S. and China is closer. More concretely, the U.S. Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, said that progress was being made in the agreement's details.
Investors kicked off the week on a cautious note after Moody's downgraded the US credit rating from Aaa to Aa1, citing concerns about the country's fiscal trajectory, rising debt burden and high interest costs. With this downgrade, the US lost its only remaining triple A credit rating.