Market Update

Oil prices continued to decline on Tuesday, posting huge losses in early trades during the American session. Concerns about renewed lockdowns in Europe, especially France and Germany, are negatively impacting the outlook for demand recovery. Last Saturday, France announced a major four-week lockdown to combat the spread of the virus, …

New home sales in the United States declined by 18.2% in February to 775,000, compared with their level in January, data by the U.S. Census Bureau showed on Tuesday. On an annual level, new home sales rose by 8.2% last month, compared with their level in February 2020. Data further …

The main indices of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) opened Tuesday on a lower note, with the market anticipating new signals from upcoming remarks from the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Remarks are set to discuss the prospects of inflation and …

The current account deficit in the United States accelerated to a 12-year high in 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic severely affected the flow of goods and services. The US Commerce Department said the current account deficit, which measures the flow of goods, services, and investments into and out of the …

The office of British Trade Secretary Lise Truss said that she discussed progress toward a free trade agreement with the United States during talks with her US counterpart on Monday, pointing to the need for closer economic relations between the two countries. Truss’s office said she telephoned Catherine Tay to …

The Regional Business Activity Index of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey rose sharply to 38.6 in March from 3.9 in February. Further details of the publication revealed that the Firm-level Business Activity Index improved to 33.5 from 7.5 and the Full-time Employment Index edged higher …

The US dollar fell from its highest in four months against a basket of currencies on Monday, matching a drop in US Treasury yields. The dollar index fell 0.34% to 91.780 at the end of the trading session, after gaining 0.5% last week. The US Treasury yield fell today from …

The data from the UK showed on Friday that the CBI’s Manufacturing Order Book Balance improved sharply to its highest level since April 2019 at -5 in March from -24 in February. This reading beat the market expectation of -20 by a wide margin. Further details of the publication revealed …

Barclays raised its forecast for oil prices this year at $4 a barrel, indicating that major producers are cautious about oversupply as demand recovers gradually from the recession caused by the pandemic. The bank now expects a price for Brent crude at $66 a barrel and for US West Texas …

Oil prices fell 1% on Tuesday (March 23rd), as they were hit by fears that new restrictions imposed to combat the Coronavirus pandemic and the slow distribution of vaccines in Europe will slow down the recovery in demand, while producers cut production in a sign of abundant supplies. US West …