EUROPE EXPECTED WITHOUT RELIEF AFTER “MINUTES” FROM THE FED WITHOUT SURPRISE
by Laetitia Volga
PARIS (Archyde.com) – The main European stock markets are expected without much change on Thursday at the opening the day following the publication of the “minutes” of the Federal Reserve which confirm market expectations on the continuation of the rise in interest rates in UNITED STATES.
The first indications available indicate a drop of 0.08% for the Parisian CAC 40, 0.12% for the Dax in Frankfurt, 0.17% for the FTSE in London and 0.11% for the EuroStoxx 50 .
Minutes of the Fed’s latest monetary policy meeting, released on Wednesday, showed a majority of Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members thought it “likely appropriate” to raise rates by half a point in June and in July.
“What did the Fed minutes tell us that we didn’t already know? Not much, which likely explains the weak US market reaction,” Michael Hewson at CMC Markets said in a note.
“Markets have already become accustomed to the idea of another 50 basis point rate hike in June and July, and more hikes to come, as well as talk of the possibility of raising rates. rate above the neutral point in order to limit above-target inflation,” added the analyst.
The session might be less lively than usual in Europe on this Thursday of Ascension, a public holiday in France among others, but investors will watch, at 12:30 GMT, the publication of the second estimate of gross domestic product (GDP) American in the first quarter. After the announcement in the first estimate of a surprise contraction of 1.4% at an annualized rate, the Archyde.com consensus anticipates a slight upward revision, to -1.3%.
A WALL STREET
The New York Stock Exchange ended higher on Wednesday following the publication of the minutes of the Fed meeting, showing that its leaders consider the American economy very dynamic, while they seek to control inflation without causing a recession.
The Dow Jones index gained 0.60%, or 191.66 points, to 32,120.28 points, the Standard & Poor’s 500 gained 37.25 points, or 0.95%, to 3,978.73 points and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 170.29 points (+1.51%) to 11,434.74 points.
Nine of the eleven major sectors of the S&P-500 finished in the green.
On the individual stock side, Tesla and Amazon recorded gains, respectively 2.6% and 4.9%, and contributed to the rise of the S&P-500 and the Nasdaq.
Department store chain Nordstrom jumped 14% following raising its forecast for full-year revenue and profit.
After the close, Nvidia released a lower-than-expected quarterly revenue forecast due in part to the expected drop in chip sales for the video game sector. The title lost nearly 7% in off-session transactions.
The Nasdaq is thus indicated down 0.51% at the opening on Thursday. Futures contracts show a decline of 0.08% for the Dow Jones and 0.21% for the S&P-500.
IN ASIA
In Tokyo, the Nikkei index is little changed (-0.2%), the increase in the values of air and rail offsetting the decline in those of the semiconductor sector.
In Chinese markets, the Shanghai SSE Composite advanced 0.7% and the CSI 300 0.68% the day following a meeting between Premier Li Keqiang, senior government officials and provincial leaders on stabilizing the economy. a slowing economy.
EXCHANGES/RATES
The dollar is gaining some ground once morest a basket of six international currencies (+0.08%) but remains close to the one-month low reached at the start of the week, and the euro is stable at $1.0677.
The yields of US government bonds also vary little in exchanges in Asia: that of ten-year Treasury bills is displayed at 2.7523%, the two-year at 2.502%.
OIL
The price of oil is supported once once more by speculation on a European embargo targeting Russian crude.
Brent gained 0.46% to 114.55 dollars a barrel and US light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) 0.59% to 110.98 dollars.
(Written by Laetitia Volga, edited by Bertrand Boucey)
