March 6th, 2017

Daily Market Commentary

 

 

 

Economic News:

  • Factory orders in the US were up 1.2%, in line with estimates.
  • A Sentix Survey of Investor Confidence in the Eurozone was quoted at 20.7, above estimates.
  • Fourth Quarter GDP apparently fell 1.1% in Greece.

Canada:

  • Canada wants to move quickly with U.S. President Donald Trump to update the North American Free Trade Agreement, as delays in talks over that deal and any new border taxes will discourage investment across the continent, Canada’s ambassador to Washington said.
  • Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. today announced that following the successful closure of the skincare products asset sale on March 3, 2017, Valeant has used the net proceeds of the sale to pay down approximately $1.1 billion of its senior secured term loans.  This debt repayment further enhances the company’s confidence in meeting its goals, and it is taking this opportunity to refinance and amend additional portions of its outstanding debt to further create operating flexibility.

United States:

  • The Dollar Index swung between gains and losses as investors looked to lock in profits, with Friday’s “buy the rumor, sell the fact” price action continuing to weigh on bullish sentiment. The latest weakness in the greenback has raised concerns for Investors with long holdings in the U.S. currency, eroding conviction in the trade, according to traders across Europe.

International:

  • European stocks fell in a broad decline, after capping their best weekly gain since December, as mining shares dropped with copper prices and Deutsche Bank AG helped drag lenders lower.
  • Standard Life Plc, Scotland’s largest insurer, agreed to acquire Aberdeen Asset Management Plc for about 3.8 billion pounds ($4.7 billion), creating one of Europe’s biggest fund managers.
  • One year after he split Deutsche Bank AG’s investment banking and trading units, John Cryan has put them back together with a familiar mandate: fewer clients and lower costs. Cryan, chief executive officer since 2015, said Sunday that the business will focus more on corporate clients and will pare the list of fund managers and other institutions it serves.
  • Asian stocks gained, led by rally in energy and mining companies after China set an upbeat growth target for this year. Japan equities fell after North Korea fired four ballistic missiles early Monday that fell into the Sea of Japan.
  • China is considering dialing back or delaying proposed measures aimed at pushing automakers to produce more electric vehicles, after industry feedback that the targets are overly ambitious.

 

*All sources from Bloomberg unless otherwise specified