10 December 2020
Markets ended mixed after a more cautious session. Volatility nudged up and European and EM stocks were mixed, while weakness in some technology shares dragged down U.S. stocks.
Evolution of the international financial markets and evaluation of the main events and economic indicators of the previous day session. Available in English.
Markets ended mixed after a more cautious session. Volatility nudged up and European and EM stocks were mixed, while weakness in some technology shares dragged down U.S. stocks.
Investors traded in a mixed mood in the first two sessions of the week. EM stocks were mixed and European equities nudged down, while U.S. stocks continued to advance on the back of health equities (the FDA signaled it will give the go-ahead to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine soon) and on greater hopes for a new fiscal package.
Investors ended the week in a favorable mood and stocks rose across the board on Friday. U.S. stocks also closed higher despite signals that the labor market is losing steam (non-farm payrolls increased by 245k in November vs 610k in October) as investors focused on prospects of a new fiscal package.
Yesterday's trading session was dominated by news that Pfizer had halved the amount of Covid-19 vaccines that it hoped to distribute in 2021 due to supply chain issues, which provoked a late-afternoon sell-off in the S&P 500 which closed 0.1% lower on the day.
Yesterday's trading session was dominated by news that Democratic congressional leaders in the US expressed support for a $908bn additional stimulus plan proposed by a bipartisan group of US senators. The US Treasury yield curve steepened, with the difference between yields on 10-year bonds and 2-year bonds reaching a 3-year high.
Investors traded in a risk-on mood on Tuesday as the Caixin/Markit Manufacturing PMI survey showed that Chinese industrial activity was accelerating at its fastest pace in a decade in November (54.9 vs 53.6 in October), raising hopes for the global recovery.
Investors on Monday traded in their gains after one of the best months in decades for stock markets, during which breakthroughs in Covid-19 vaccines boosted stock valuations in sectors affected by the pandemic.
Global stocks are set to have their best month on record as optimism about a Covid-19 vaccine and Joe Biden's victory in the US elections caused a market rally in November.
Investors continued to trade cautiously in yesterday's session as COVID-19 cases continued rising in Europe and in the US. In this context, demand for safe assets (such as the Japanese Yen or the Swiss Franc) increased on a day in which US markets were closed due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
In yesterday's session, investors traded cautiously amid signs of a slow economic recovery. In the US, initial claims for unemployment benefits rose by 30k in the previous week and minutes from the Fed's November meeting showed how its members discussed how to provide more guidance on QE.
Investors traded with a risk-on mood in yesterday's session amid the formal start of Joe Biden's transition into the White House.
Economic sentiment data and new advances in a vaccine treatment for COVID-19 were the main drivers of a mixed session in financial markets. On the one hand, the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc said that their vaccine prevented 70% of the participants from falling ill. This effectiveness rises to 90% with an alternative treatment.