Beyond Bulls & Bears

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

It felt like Halloween came early for many stocks last week, but this week holds a number of potential drivers, with earnings season continuing a pace and several central bank decisions.

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

Despite the overall strength last week, stock markets were really at the mercy of the headlines tied to Ukraine, which flip-flopped from one day to the next on the progress of peace talks.

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

Soaring commodity prices and the commensurate inflationary impact is alarming investors. The fear is that consumer confidence and spending will be hit, and we find ourselves in a stagflation environment, with stagnating economic growth (or recession) and soaring inflation.

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

Whilst there has been a lot of noise around the new Omicron variant, we are still waiting for full clarity on the severity of illness, vaccine efficacy and the likelihood of reinfection. Market volatility remains high.

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

News of the COVID-19 variant that emerged in South Africa (named Omicron) shook sentiment late last week prompting sharp declines. Looking ahead, it will be important to watch how this latest COVID news feeds into central bank thinking, with money markets already repriced the timeline for potential interest rate hikes further out.

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe
Equity

Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

Inflation remains front and centre. Strong US inflation data raised fears that the Federal Reserve is behind the curve and would need to take more hawkish action in the future.