On 25 November, 2015 – European markets rebounded on expectations of further easing by the central bank

Stocks retreated in Asia on geopolitical concerns but Europe rebounded from Tuesday’s losses. US stocks were little changed in lackluster pre-holiday trading.
United States
Stocks barely budged in light trading in pre-Thanksgiving holiday trading. Several stocks moved on earnings news however. The Dow Jones industrials and S&P were virtually unchanged while the Nasdaq added 0.3%.
HP tumbled after reporting weak sales of PCs, printers and commercial software. Hewlett Packard Enterprise rose after sales of hardware for data centers improved. Deere dealt with plunging sales of tractors, bulldozers and other equipment by slashing costs. The company’s fiscal fourth quarter results and its projections for the current fiscal year were better than expected. Pfizer rebounded. The company agreed to buy a competitor, Allergan, on Monday for about US$155 billion, one of the largest corporate deals ever. Shares of Pfizer had fallen since the companies announced they were in talks about a combination.
There was an avalanche of new economic data released before the holiday. October consumer spending inched up 0.1%, the second small gain in a row. However, personal income for the same period added 0.4%. Spending on long lasting manufactured goods improved in October after two months of declines. Durable goods orders jumped 3.0%. And jobless claims dropped by 12,000 in the latest week.
These data reflect observations at 4:00 PM US ET. Gold at the afternoon London fixing was down US$8.40 to US$1,068.00. Copper futures were down 0.85% to US$2.05. WTI spot crude was up 11 US cents to US$42.98. Dated Brent spot crude was down 6 US cents to US$46.06. The US dollar was up against the euro, yen and Swiss franc. It declined against the pound and the Canadian and Australian dollars. The Dollar Index was up 0.2%. The yields on US Treasury 30 year bond and 10 year note were unchanged at 3.00% and 2.23% respectively.
US markets are closed Thursday for the Thanksgiving Day holiday. Trading will resume Friday for a shortened session.
Europe
Stocks rebounded Wednesday from Tuesday’s losses. Geopolitical concerns eased after US President Barack Obama and NATO urged Russia and Turkey to de-escalate tensions. Travel stocks recovered after yesterday’s pull back. The FTSE was up 1.0%, the CAC gained 1.5%, the DAX jumped 2.2% and the SMI added 1.4%.
Investor sentiment also received a boost from a media report that the European Central Bank is mulling the implementation of a two-tier charge on banks parking their cash with the ECB and planning to widen its bond buying program. The ECB officials considered various options, including the buying of bonds of towns and regions, as well as charging a two-tier penalty on banks amassing money with the ECB. They even discussed the purchase of rebundled loans at risk of non-payment in preparatory meetings, although such a measure looks unlikely for the time being, according to sources.
The UK economy is set to grow faster than earlier expected in the next two years as investments are projected to improve, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said Wednesday. The chancellor also abandoned the controversial move to make changes in tax credits, citing better public finances. Based on forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility, the economy is set to expand 2.4% next year, Osborne said in his Spending Review and Autumn Statement speech in the UK Parliament. That was higher than the 2.3% growth predicted in July. For 2017, the growth forecast was lifted to 2.5% from 2.4%. In the long term, growth was forecast at 2.4% in 2018 and 2.3% in 2019 and 2020.
K+S climbed on reports that Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan is mulling a new offer for the company. Metro gained after the department stores operator decided to increase its dividend payout ratio. Lufthansa advanced after its cabin crew called off a planned strike. Auto makers Volkswagen, BMW added 2.74% and Daimler advanced. In Paris, LVMH and Kering gained along with Carrefour and L’Oréal. In London, Thomas Cook Group surged. The company said its full-year pre-tax profit was £50 million compared to a loss of £114 million in the prior year. Rolls-Royce finished higher after the company announced restructuring plans on Tuesday. Builders including Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey, Berkeley Group and Barratt Developments climbed after Osborne’s Spending Review.
Asia Pacific
Stocks in this region retreated on Wednesday as escalating geopolitical tensions and commodity price volatility posed risks to the region’s economic stability. The dollar edged lower and crude prices eased from two-month highs, while gold clung to overnight gains amid heightened tensions in the aftermath of the Russian warplane drowning by Turkey near the Syrian border on Tuesday. Small gains in US stocks during the Tuesday global market day and renewed hopes that the Japanese government will draw up a supplementary budget soon kept losses in check across the region.
The Shanghai Composite added 0.9% while the Hang Seng index retreated 0.4% amid rising Middle East tensions. China plans to invest over US$1 trillion overseas and import more than US$10 trillion in commodities over the next five years, the state-backed China Daily quoted Premier Li Keqiang as saying. Tech shares outperformed in Shanghai after China called on overseas robotics companies to share technologies with China-based vendors.
The Nikkei was 0.4% lower. The yen got a boost amid flight to safety in the wake of recent terrorist attacks in Paris, heightened security in Brussels and the downing of a Russian plane by Turkey. Also, minutes of the Bank of Japan’s October 30 meeting showed that board members were worried about meeting the 2% inflation target due to the crisis in China and a planned second sales tax increase. Exporters and airlines closed mostly lower. Takata dropped after Ford decided to stop using its air bag inflators in new vehicles. Sharp advanced on reports its lenders were considering forgiving loans to facilitate an investment by a government backed investment fund.
Both the S&P/ASX and All Ordinaries tumbled 0.6%. While most miners ended modestly lower, gold miner Newcrest advanced and oil & gas producer Santos rallied. Airline Qantas dropped after the US issued a travel alert for American citizens. ANZ, Commonwealth and NAB were down after Treasury officials cut economic growth forecasts and RBA Governor Glenn Stevens signaled that interest rates will stay on hold at next Tuesday’s meeting.
The Kospi slid 0.3% as foreign investors extended their selling streak to a fourth consecutive session.
Global Stock Market Recap

Please remember, the value of investments and the income from them can do down as well as up. Funds that invest in overseas markets may be subject to currency fluctuations. Investments in small and emerging markets can be more volatile than other overseas markets. Reference in this document to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities, but is included for the purposes of illustration only.
Looking forward*
Thursday – Eurozone October M3 money supply will be posted.
Friday — Japan releases October unemployment, household spending and consumer prices. France posts October consumption of manufactured goods and producer prices. The UK reports its second estimate of third quarter GDP. The Eurozone reports final November economic sentiment. The US reports weekly money supply and Fed balance sheet.
*Note — all releases are listed in local time.