European Close Market Briefing – 15/11/2017 – by Arjun Lakhanpal

In European Equity Markets a fall in commodity stocks and sustained profit-taking sent stocks to an eight-week low and their seventh straight session of losses on Wednesday, but Airbus rallied after winning a record plane deal. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down to its lowest level since Sept. 20. It closed 0.4 percent down, slightly off its earlier lows. Britain’s top share index FTSE 100 declined 0.4 percent and Germany’s export-oriented DAX index fell 0.6 percent, weighed down by a stronger euro. Shares in telecoms and cable firm Altice jumped 8 percent after the company appeased investors by announcing a shift in focus from acquisitions to reducing its 50 billion euro ($59 billion) net debt.

In Currency Markets the dollar trimmed losses against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday, after data showed a surprise rise in retail sales last month as well as an uptick in underlying inflation, cementing expectations for an interest rate hike in December. The Labor Department said on Wednesday its Consumer Price Index edged up 0.1 percent last month after jumping 0.5 percent in September.   The euro was up 0.12 percent at $1.181 against the greenback, after earlier rising as high as $1.186. Against the yen, the dollar was 0.44 percent lower. The Canadian dollar weakened to a one-week low against its U.S. counterpart as oil and stocks fell. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six rival currencies, was down 0.08 percent at 93.748.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell for a fourth session on Wednesday, after the U.S. government reported an unexpected increase in crude and gasoline stocks, but an increase in refining runs and a decline in distillate stocks helped prices bounce off session lows. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $55.42 per barrel, down 31 cents. Brent crude futures were down 37 cents at $61.85 a barrel, having fallen by 1.5 percent on Tuesday, its largest one-day decrease in a month. Crude inventories rose for a second week in a row, building by 1.9 million barrels in the week to Nov. 10.  Spot gold was up 0.4 percent at $1,286.18 an ounce and silver was up 0.8 percent at $17.14 an ounce.

In US Equity Markets  main indexes were lower on Wednesday as energy stocks remained under pressure after oil prices fell for a fourth straight day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.45 percent, at 23,304.15, the S&P 500 was down 0.45 percent, at 2,567.32 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.44 percent, at 6,708.02. Target  shares lost 12 percent after the retailer issued a disappointing profit forecast for the key holiday quarter. Amazon-owned Whole Foods Market announced price cuts on best-selling grocery items and holiday staples. Shares of other retailers fell. Kroger fell 1.82 percent, Costco 1 percent and Kellogg  2.19 percent. The CBOE Volatility index hit a more than 2 month high at 14.51.

In Bond Markets the U.S. Treasury yield curve flattened to a 10-year low on Wednesday after data showed a slight pickup in U.S. inflation, as the market priced in further interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve next year. In midmorning trading, the 10-year Treasury yield fell to 2.345 percent, from 2.381 percent late on Tuesday. The U.S. two-year yield was at 1.691 percent, unchanged from Tuesday. U.S. 30-year bond yields slid to 2.798 percent, down from Tuesday’s 2.839 percent.