Global Market Report - January 15

US stock markets are closed for Martin Luther King day but there has been plenty of activity in Asia and Europe to kick off the trading week

James Gard 15 January, 2018 | 11:00AM
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Asia

Wall Street’s higher close on Friday gave Asian equity markets the impetus to begin the new trading week higher. Japan’s market-capitalisation-weighted Topix index was the biggest riser in percentage terms, rising around 0.5% to 1,883. The Nikkei index was also higher on Friday’s close, but Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s CSI 300 struggled on Monday as the Chinese yuan rose on a higher currency fixing from the country’s central bank. China releases GDP numbers on Thursday, which are expected to show that the country’s economic output grew 6.8% year on year in the last quarter.

Europe

The UK’s biggest corporate news is that UK construction firm Carillion (CLLN) has filed for compulsory liquidation. The company had been in recent bailout talks with the UK government but on Monday the announcement came that there would be no rescue. Carillion’s share price crashed in the summer of 2017 amid concerns about its long-term future. The company’s listed rivals, such as Serco (SRP) and Balfour Beatty (BBY) gained on the news.

UK inflation figures are released on Tuesday. They are expected to show that consumer price inflation rose 3% in December, lower than the 3.1% seen in November. Bank of England policymakers have been forecasting that the recent rise in inflation is temporary, and the latest data will test this hypothesis.

European exchanges were held back another good day for the euro. The single currency broke through the $1.20 level last week and made a move towards $1.23 on Monday morning, the highest level since late 2014.

North America

The US stock market is closed as the country observes Martin Luther King day as a public holiday. Monday’s holiday represents a pause before the earnings season revs up again this week. Banks are in focus: Citigroup (C) reports before the open on Tuesday, Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS) release earnings on Wednesday, while on Thursday Morgan Stanley (MS) reports.

Canada’s Toronto Stock Exchange is open as normal. The country’s housing market is in focus on Monday with existing home sales data for December released 

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Securities Mentioned in Article

Security NamePriceChange (%)Morningstar
Rating
Balfour Beatty PLC431.00 GBX1.17
Bank of America Corp45.87 USD0.02Rating
Carillion PLC14.20 GBP0.00
Citigroup Inc68.89 USD-0.19Rating
Morgan Stanley132.76 USD0.34Rating
Serco Group PLC154.40 GBX-1.53
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc594.22 USD0.28Rating

About Author

James Gard

James Gard  is senior editor for Morningstar.co.uk

 

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