Market Update

The Chinese government has promised the United States to go through with the first phase of the trade deal between the world’s two largest economies, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a TV interview on Friday. “The Chinese have done some of the work they need to do …

European stocks finished lower on Friday, after PMI data showed a decline in economic expansion in the Eurozone, reflecting challenges in the road to recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis. The Stoxx Europe 600 index closed lower by 0.21%, increasing its weekly losses to 0.9%. Meanwhile, the UK’s …

The IHS Markit flash composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the Eurozone declined in August, to 51.6 from 54.9 in July, reflecting the challenging road for recovery facing economic activity in the European bloc.   However, the index remained in the expansion territory above the neutral 50 reading. The data …

Oil rigs in the United States decreased by three rigs during the week ending on 14 August, data by Baker Hughes showed on Friday. The US oil rig count declined to a new record low at a total of 244 rigs last week. The continuous decrease in active oil rigs …

New house prices in Canada increased for the third month in a row during July, data by Statistics Canada showed on Friday. The Canadian new house prices index increased last month by 0.4% on a monthly basis, and by 1.7% on an annual basis.

Canadian retailer sales increased during the month of June by 23% to CAD 53 billion, recovering to its level in February prior to the COVID-19 crisis, according to data by Statistics Canada. Retail sales rose across all types of stores, with clothing retailers leading the rise with a 142.3% growth. …

Existing home sales in the United States grew by 24.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.86 million units in July, registering the second monthly consecutive monthly increase, as shown by data of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) on Friday. The June reading was revised to 4.70 million …

Consumer confidence in the Eurozone improved during August by 0.3 points, according to preliminary data by the European Commission on Friday. The consumer morale index recorded -14.7 this month, up from -15.0 in July. For the European Union (EU), the consumer confidence increased by 0.1 points to -15.5.

The business activity in the US manufacturing sector is seen expanding at a robust pace in August with the IHS Markit’s advanced Manufacturing PMI rising from 50.9 in July to 53.6. This reading came in better than the market expectation of 51.9. Further details of the publication revealed that the …

Oil prices rose, and is on the path of achieving gains for the third week in a row, as it was strengthened by the efforts of major crude producers to cut production in light of concerns about the economic recovery from the Coronavirus pandemic. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures …