Market Update

Employment in Canada declined by 62,600 in December, compared to expectations of 27,500, and the Unemployment Rate ticked up to 8.6% from 8.5% in November as expected, Statistics Canada reported on Friday.

Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) in the US fell by 140,000 in December, the data published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics revelled on Friday. This reading followed November’s increase of 336,000 and missed the market expectation.

Bitcoin jumped more than 5% on Friday, January 8th, to a new record high at $ 41,530, to offset losses incurred earlier in the session. The most popular digital currency in the world fell to a low of $36618.36 on the Bitstamp exchange before rising. The rival cryptocurrency Ethereum rose …

The British health ministry announced on Friday that the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for use, as reported by Reuters. The health ministry further noted that they have ordered 10 million additional doses of Moderna’s vaccine to bring the total to 17 million …

Data showed German industrial output and exports rose in November, adding to indications that the export-dependent manufacturing sector gave momentum to Europe’s largest economy in the last quarter of the year. Industrial output increased 0.9% on a monthly basis and exports rose 2.2%, according to figures released by the Federal …

European stocks rose Friday, January 8th, while the German DAX index hit a record high on the back of better-than-expected economic data and encouraging earnings updates from chipmakers. The European STOXX600 index rose 0.7% by and heading towards a weekly gain of more than 3% in light of hopes that …

The dollar held on to its biggest gains in more than two months against the major counterpart currencies on Friday, January 8th, as high US bond yields abandoned some bets on the dollar’s decline. The US currency rebounded from its lowest level in nearly three years, while traders reaped profits …

The seasonally adjusted Unemployment Rate in the euro area declined to 8.3% in November from 8.4% in October, the data published by the Eurostat showed on Friday. This reading came in better than the market expectation of 8.5%.

Oil prices held near an 11-month high on Friday (January 8th) and is on track for strong weekly gains as Saudi Arabia’s pledge to cut production continued to support market sentiment. Brent crude rose 13 cents, or 0.2%, to $ 54.51 a barrel. The global benchmark touched $54.90 on Thursday, …

Gold fell on Friday, January 8th, as the dollar and US Treasury yields rose, but hopes for additional stimulus in the world’s largest economy kept the yellow metal on track for gains for the second week in a row. Spot gold fell 0.3% to 1,907.66 dollars but it has risen …