Market Headlines – 26/2/2018

US

• US equities ended the week on a positive note on Friday, gaining 1.6% for the session. Strength was broad-based, with all 11 sectors finishing in positive territory.
• The dollar also resumed its upward trend, rising 0.2% against a basket of peers, leaving the greenback almost 2% higher from a three-year low touched a week earlier.
• The stronger dollar did not impact oil prices in a negative manner last week. Brent crude prices rose 1.4% on Friday, extending Thursday’s 1.5% gain after the release of positive inventory data.
• The main events for the week ahead include Fed Chair Jay Powell’s testimony before Congress on Wednesday, along with a series of US economic data releases, the most scrutinised of which is likely to be consumer price inflation data.

Europe

• European equities also had a positive session on Friday, albeit more muted compared to their US peers – the Euro Stoxx 50 Index gained 0.3%, the German DAX index rose 0.2% and the French CAC index settled 0.2% higher.
• Futures indicate a positive open in the region of 0.5% for European indices this morning.

Asia

• Asian equities have begun the week on a positive note, with Japanese and Chinese stocks both finishing 1.2% higher this morning.