STRONG BUY RECOMMENDATION IN GOLD AND OIL FOR THE DAY European indices set to open lower on Ukraine fears Assets to Watch for today: European Session: FTSE 100, EUR/USD, GPB/USD, EUR/JPY, Gold European indices set to open lower on Ukraine fears The main European stock markets are set to fall on Monday, after weak Chinese data and amid ongoing concerns about the situation in Ukraine. In Asian trading, markets shrugged off Chinas March HSBC flash PMI which suggested activity at Chinese factories fell for a fifth month in a row, as investors focused on renewed hopes of a stimulus package from policymakers in China. In Europe, Germany in particular, which has close manufacturing and business ties to Russia, is expected to be hit by renewed fears about the economic impact of sanctions. On Monday, reports by Reuters suggested that Russian troops were trying to seize a Ukrainian naval base in the disputed Crimea region. Last week European indices pushed higher late Friday and posted solid weekly gains after euro-zone consumer confidence climbed to a six-year high. The indexes briefly dipped into red territory during the session, but moved higher again as U.S. markets advanced and the report on euro-zone consumer confidence beat forecasts. The European Commission said the flash consumer-confidence indicator for March rose to -9.3 from -12.7, outstripping expectations of a -12.4 reading and climbing to the highest level since 2007. Many economists have called the data as encouraging news for the euro zone and suggest that so far, at least, the Ukraine crisis has not worried consumers unduly. Hopefully, improved consumer confidence, stabilizing labour markets and very low consumer price inflation will increasingly support consumer spending and help euro-zone economic recovery to gain traction over the coming months. U.S. indices fall as investors consider situation in Ukraine U.S. stocks fell on Friday, with the S&P 500 erasing gains after rising to an intraday record, as investors considered Ukraine ahead of the weekend. The standoff had the European Union inking a pact with Ukraine and widening sanctions. President Barack Obama on Thursday approved possible future penalties on Russian sectors including financial services, defence and energy. After jumping 115 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 28.28 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 16,302.77. The Dow ended 1.5 percent higher for the week. After rising to an intraday record 1,884.00, the S&P 500 fell 5.49 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 1,866.52. The S&P 500 gained 1.4 percent from the week earlier. On Thursday, stocks advanced to recoup most of the prior days losses, after upbeat economic reports and as investors reconsidered Yellens remarks on Wednesday, which sparked concern about the timing of when the central bank hikes short-term interest rates, currently at record lows. What weve seen this week is every piece of economic data has been incrementally better than expected. Weve had a major concern there was a soft patch in the economy and all the weather-related things represent pent-up demand, so we could have a better spring than expected. Broadly speaking, the market is digesting the Feds decisions, in terms of Yellen and her preference for guidance. Investors who had priced in the Fed funds rate being about 25 basis points higher at the end of 2015 are now looking at mid-2015, so June probably, with the economy improving, this could be easily digested.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 10:28:59 +0000