Asia
Equity markets in the Asia-Pacific region were given mixed signals from Wall Street overnight: on the one hand the tech-focused Nasdaq hit a new record high of 7588 points, but both the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones dropped back on Friday’s close.
With the dollar strengthening ahead of today’s US inflation figures, the Japanese yen fell to a two-week low, which gave its usual boost to the country’s equities. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was one of the best performing indices in the region, pushing back to just below the 22,000 points level with a gain of 144 points. The country’s Topix index was not too far behind in percentage terms.
Europe
In the eurozone, most large exchanges were showing modest gains by midday local time, with Spain’s Ibex the best performer.
In the UK, the FTSE 100 was relatively static ahead of the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, which is likely to give investors further clarity about the health of the UK economy, the likelihood of tax rises or public spending increases.
Chilean miner Antofagasta (ANTO) released full-year results today that were well received by the market, making the company the second biggest riser in the FTSE 100.
The most dramatic share price move of the day was that of food company Greencore (GNC). Its shares fell nearly 20% on a profit warning, weighing on the more domestically focused FTSE 250 index.
North America
The Consumer Price Index is expected to have risen by 2.2% in February above the same month in 2017, a touch higher than in January. US inflation is a hot topic at the moment and has been driving the recent gains in US Treasuries.
Average weekly earnings will also be in view, which will be an important data release because fears of a wage spiral in the US economy crashed the stock market around a month ago.
In terms of earnings, Dicks Sporting Goods (DKS) releases results before the market opens on Tuesday. The company recently reached global notoriety by banning the sale of firearms to customers below the age of 21. The company, which has more than 600 shops, supports “common sense” gun reform.