Market Update

Wholesale inventories in the United States increased less than expected in March, due to a huge surge in sales that resulted from stronger local demand, according to official data released on Friday. A final reading showing that wholsale inventories rose by 1.3%, compared with an initially estimated 1.4% for March, …

Canada’s economy lost 207,000 jobs last month due to the resurgence of the Coronavirus pandemic, which led to renewed restrictions and lockdown measures, official data showed on Friday. Accordingly, the Canadian unemployment rate increased in April to 8.1% from 7.5% in March, according to Statistics Canada. Data showed that the …

Bank Of America’s analysis of weekly fund flow statistics showed that investors bought a lot of global stocks in the week ending Wednesday, as companies reported huge profits and major central banks downplayed concerns related to a return to monetary stimulus. Equity funds attracted $18.5 billion, which was mainly driven …

The dollar held on Friday, May 7, near its lowest level in a week, as it is under pressure ahead of the release of US jobs data, which is expected to boost hopes for a strong economic recovery after the pandemic and support investors’ appetite for risk. Against a basket …

Oil prices recovered after a 1% drop in the previous session, with the support of positive economic data from China and the United States, but the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in India put pressure on prices. Brent crude futures for July delivery were at $68.40 a barrel, up 31 …

Japanese shares closed higher on Friday, May 7, as investors flocked to inexpensive technology shares, while gains were capped by concerns about a slow economic recovery amid extended emergency measures linked to COVID-19. The Nikkei index rose 0.09% to close at 29,357.82 points, while the broader Topix index rose 0.29% …

Reuters calculations based on data from Chinese customs found that China’s trade surplus with the United States amounted to $28.11 billion in April, up from $21.37 billion in March. In the first four months of 2021, China had a trade surplus of $100.68 billion with the United States.

Data from the German Federal Statistics Office showed that German companies defied the Coronavirus crisis and raised their exports for the eleventh consecutive month, as exports grew at 1.2%, which is twice what economists had expected. However, imports also rose, as the value of Germany’s imports increased 6.5% in March …

On Friday, May 7 India recorded 414,188 new cases of coronavirus during the past 24 hours, in a new daily record increase, while daily deaths jumped by 3,915. The number of cases in the country currently stands at 21.49 million, while the total number of deaths has reached 23,4083. This …

Gold prices rose on Friday, May 7, to a two-and-a-half-month high, and is heading to achieve the best weekly performance in 6 months, supported by the decline of the dollar and a decline in US Treasury bond yields, while investors are cautiously awaiting the US nonfarm payrolls report due to …