Solid ECN
Well-known member
Market Trends: Navigating Equity Dips and Economic Signals
Last week, European and US stock markets kept falling, marking six weeks of losses. The main worries were about companies' earnings not being as good as hoped and their future outlooks seeming less positive as we move into the year's last quarter. In the US, the markets also dipped, hitting their lowest point since May, showing they're not as strong as they were earlier in the year.
On Friday, the prices of oil and gold jumped suddenly. This happened when the news came out about Israeli forces moving into Gaza, which made gold prices go over $2,000 an ounce for the first time since May. Even though Brent crude oil's price went up past $90 a barrel, it ended the week lower.
The hope is that the careful steps taken in Gaza will increase pressure on Hamas without causing more trouble along Israel's northern border. European markets, which had closed by the time of the Gaza events on Friday, are expected to start a bit stronger, considering the military actions have been limited so far.
It's easy to think the drop in stock markets last week was just because of the uncertain situation in the Middle East. But it was also because of companies not doing as well as expected and lowering their future earnings outlooks, which led to some big drops in their stock prices. This pattern might keep up this week, with all eyes on updates from big companies like HSBC, BP, Shell, and Apple.
Meanwhile, economic reports from Europe and the UK didn't show much good news, but the US did better, with people waiting to see if central banks will change their plans based on recent data. The US Federal Reserve probably won't ease up on its policies soon, and another interest rate increase by the end of the year is still possible. But the Bank of England seems done raising rates for now, with people guessing when the next rate cut might happen in 2024.
In the UK, the number of approved mortgages and other spending data for September might show that people are still careful about spending. And in Germany, after the European Central Bank decided not to change interest rates, inflation is expected to go down in October, and the economy might shrink a bit in the third quarter.
Last week, European and US stock markets kept falling, marking six weeks of losses. The main worries were about companies' earnings not being as good as hoped and their future outlooks seeming less positive as we move into the year's last quarter. In the US, the markets also dipped, hitting their lowest point since May, showing they're not as strong as they were earlier in the year.
On Friday, the prices of oil and gold jumped suddenly. This happened when the news came out about Israeli forces moving into Gaza, which made gold prices go over $2,000 an ounce for the first time since May. Even though Brent crude oil's price went up past $90 a barrel, it ended the week lower.
The hope is that the careful steps taken in Gaza will increase pressure on Hamas without causing more trouble along Israel's northern border. European markets, which had closed by the time of the Gaza events on Friday, are expected to start a bit stronger, considering the military actions have been limited so far.
It's easy to think the drop in stock markets last week was just because of the uncertain situation in the Middle East. But it was also because of companies not doing as well as expected and lowering their future earnings outlooks, which led to some big drops in their stock prices. This pattern might keep up this week, with all eyes on updates from big companies like HSBC, BP, Shell, and Apple.
Meanwhile, economic reports from Europe and the UK didn't show much good news, but the US did better, with people waiting to see if central banks will change their plans based on recent data. The US Federal Reserve probably won't ease up on its policies soon, and another interest rate increase by the end of the year is still possible. But the Bank of England seems done raising rates for now, with people guessing when the next rate cut might happen in 2024.
In the UK, the number of approved mortgages and other spending data for September might show that people are still careful about spending. And in Germany, after the European Central Bank decided not to change interest rates, inflation is expected to go down in October, and the economy might shrink a bit in the third quarter.