Market Update

European stocks declined on Thursday as Treasury yields rose, with the pan-European STOXX 600 index losing 0.38%, after falling by 1% earlier in the session. The basic resources sector fell by 4.3%, while the utilities sector gained 1.7%. The French CAC40 index closed marginally higher by 0.01%, while the German …

The U.S. Dollar (USD) rose on Thursday against safe-haven currencies, such as the Japanese Yen (JPY) and the Swiss Franc (CHF), supported by the increase in Treasury yields. The USD/JPY pair is up for the day by 0.57%, trading at 107.620. The pair has been moving today in a range …

Natural gas inventories in the United States decreased by 98 billion cubic feet (bscf) last week, data by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed on Thursday. The decline in natural gas supplies came below market expectations that pointed to a drop of 137 bscf for the week ending on …

Factory orders in the United States increased by 2.6% in January, data by the U.S. Census Bureau showed on Thursday. The reading exceeds that of market expectations, as a recent Dow Jones and Wall Street Journal poll of market experts expected a 2.3% increase in factory orders. The manufacturing sector …

There were 745,000 initial claims for unemployment benefits in the US during the week ending February 27, the data published by the US Department of Labor (DOL) showed on Thursday. This reading followed the previous one of 736,000 and came in better expectation of 750,000.

Preliminary data from the Union and distributors of automotive manufacturers in Britain showed that new car registrations fell by about 36% in February on an annual basis as forced public isolation procedures imposed anti-covid-19. The union noted that the volumes sold are at their lowest level in February since 1959. …

Planned job cuts in the US-based employers dropped to 34,531 in February from 79,552 in January, Challenger Gray & Christmas announced in its latest Job Cut Report on Thursday.

Oil prices rose for the second session in a row on Thursday, March 4, as they received support from the possibility of OPEC+ producers taking a decision against increasing production at an important meeting to be held later today, along with the decline in the US fuel stocks. Brent crude …

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said that global food prices rose for the ninth consecutive month in February, reaching their highest levels since July 2014, led by jumps in the prices of sugar and vegetable oils. The FAO Food Price Index, which measures monthly changes …

The data published by Eurostat showed on Thursday that Retail Sales in the euro area contracted by 5.9% on a monthly basis in January. This reading followed December’s increase of 1.8% and fell short of the market expectation for a decline of 1.1%. On a yearly basis, Retail Sales fell …