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Contents Click on the links below to get to the stuff you really really want. USA – Jobs data puncture optimism sending stocks and bond yields down (#USA) UK – Tesco leads positive corporate news to lift stocks (#UK) Continental Europe – Chinese economic data lift hopes and stocks (#Europe) Elsewhere – Chinese virus case rise stymies stock price rises (#Elsewhere) WTF – Siegfried and Roy no more (#WTF) Links (#Useful) Numbers (#Numbers) Ts & Cs (#Ts+Cs)
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USA
Jobs data came in yesterday to puncture the general optimism that Biden’s prospective $2 trillion stimulus package had wrought earlier in the week. The S&P 500 closed 0.4% lower, with tech stocks having a slight less bad day as people looked to the turbulence of the coming months before the vaccines are spread widely enough to close the pandemic down.
Unemployment surged with initial claims rising by 181,000 over the week-ending 9 January. That took the total number of initial unemployment claims to 965,000, much worse than the expected fall to 775,000.
While stock prices were falling, the demand for and prices of lower-risk rated bonds rose, sending the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury (US government bond) down from 1.18% to 1.09%. But it’s still above the 1.0% mark, so the general level of stress has lifted somewhat. It’s now a case of waiting for the lockdown to be unnecessary.
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UK
Corporate news and hopes of stimulus from the US lifted stocks across Europe.
In the UK, the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 both climbed by 0.8% on the day. Tesco stuck to its annual guidance after a boost in sales over Christmas kept it on course to match or beat the previous financial year’s profits.
Taylor Wimpey also stated that it was on course to deliver profits in line with expectations, despite the troubles at fellow house builder, Persimmon, earlier this week. Other companies chiming in with happy noises included Dunelm and Just Group. Back to Contents (#Contents)
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Continental Europe
On the continent, the Euro Stoxx 50 and German DAX added 0.7% and 0.4% respectively yesterday. Positive economic data coming from China helped to lift the mood, despite the Asian giant’s resurgence of virus cases.
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Elsewhere
Exports from China grew in December as the expectations of more lockdown restrictions worldwide increased demand for the country’s goods. But that wasn’t sufficient to lift stocks across the Asia Pacific region. The expectations of US stimulus have largely been priced in, while the worries over Chinese virus cases have increased.
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WTF (What’s The Fact?)
Siegfried and Roy no more
Siegfried Fischbacher has joined his partner in entertainment, “Roy” Uwe Ludwig Horn in the great kitty litter in the sky. The two of them had legendary status as large-scale entertainers but were best known for performing on stage with lions and tigers. This led to Roy being acted by one lion, leaving him largely wheelchair bound afterwards. He died last year of coronavirus-related illness.
Amazing though they might have been, the one memory I have is when the following photo was shown on “have I got news for you” to which Paul Merton chimed in with, “the tiger’s thinking, ‘shouldn’t I be orange and they be white?'”
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Links
Investopedia (www.investopedia.com/dictionary/) – Loads of free explanations of financial terms including some helpful videos. Not 100% accurate, but a good starting point Guffipedia (ig.ft.com/sites/guffipedia/) – Lucy Kellaway of the FT has collected some painful examples of corporate people disappearing up their own analogies Guardian (www.theguardian.com) – Free to access website with a couple of decent columnists (e.g. Nils Pratley and Larry Elliott) Times of India (timesofindia.indiatimes.com) – Why use five words when 37 will do? Daily Mail (www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/07/the-war-on-stupid-people/485618) – Click it. I dare you.
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———————————————————— IMPORTANT This is my opinion. Yes I read a lot and share what I’ve read with you, but this content remains my opinion. It’s NOT advice. If you take my advice – don’t take my advice. Any decisions you make about investments, your hairstyle or whether or not to eat marzipan are entirely at your own behest. If you’re unable to recognise the devil’s ear wax when you see it, then you’re on your own.
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