Market Headlines – 23/10/2017

US

• US. stocks posted a sixth straight weekly gain, rising 0.9% for the week, on speculation Donald Trump was closer to pulling off one of his biggest legislative priorities after the Senate approved a budget vehicle for tax cuts.
• The dollar index reached a three-month high and 10-year Treasury yields approached 2.4% amid speculation Trump was moving closer to selecting the next Federal Reserve chief.
• People familiar with the process of selecting the next Fed chief said Trump’s advisers are steering him toward either Jerome Powell, a member of the Fed Board of Governors, or Stanford economist John Taylor.

Europe

• European shares erased some of Thursday’s losses, advancing 0.1%, on the back of rising metal prices and positive corporate earnings.
• The euro slipped slightly as investors eyed political developments in Spain and negotiations over Britain’s departure from the European Union

Asia

• In Japan, a landslide election victory for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent Japanese shares higher, with the Nikkei 225 Stock Average advancing 1.1%.
• The yen reached its weakest level since July, as PM Abe being in good political shape has key implications for the pending decision on the Bank of Japan’s leadership.