Market Headlines – 4/5/2018

US

• US equities rallied into the close, settling 0.2% lower after having been down as much as 1.6% earlier in the session. Materials and Technology were among the best performing sectors on the day.
• US-Chinese trade talks came back into focus yesterday – Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer are among US officials participating in the trade meetings with China.
• Attention today will turn to the health of the US economy, with jobs data and wage growth due to be released. Consensus is expecting the US economy to have added ~190,000 jobs last month and for the unemployment rate to have dropped to 4.0%

Europe

• European equities closed lower yesterday as markets assessed inflation data and the prospect of trade talks between the US and China. The Euro Stoxx 50 index fell 0.7%, the German DAX index lost 0.9% and the French CAC settled 0.5% lower.
• On the data front, euro zone inflation unexpectedly declined in April, raising questions about the European Central Bank’s plan to scale back its stimulus program.

Asia

• Japanese markets are closed again today for a public holiday.
• Elsewhere, Asian markets settled marginally lower ahead of the release of the US jobs report.