Employment slumps weigh on market

‘Investors appetite returns for junk bonds’ Following five weeks of massive outflows from high yield bonds, this week marks the first inflow of roughly $7bn. The rationale for this move can be ascribed to two factors: in light of the recent sell-off, these assets might be viewed as a bargain and, secondly, there are signs that credit spreads – expressing cost over equivalent government bonds – are moderating. (Financial Times)
‘Stock rally fades in Asia as oil prices fall’ Yesterday, Donald Trump tweeted that Saudi Arabia and Russia were set to cut oil output by up to 15m barrels per day, causing Brent Crude to surge from $26/ barrel to $33/ barrel. Overnight, it’s become clear that there is a great deal of scepticism about the veracity of the presidents predictions because both Asian equities and oil have taken a tumble heading into European market open. (Financial Times)

Today has begun on an uncertain footing; some signs point to a bottoming of risky asset prices but at the same time the dire direction of employment is alarming. Reports in the Financial Times describe 6.6m Americans filing for benefits in the past three weeks and reveal that 950,000 have claimed universal credit since the lock down in the UK. Without a doubt, there is a cautious tone heading into this week’s close.

AU Retails Sales m/m 0.5% versus 0.4% last month

Caixin Services PMI 43.0 versus 26.5 last month

Spanish Services PMI 23.0 versus 52.1 last month

Italian Services PMI 8:45AM

French Services PMI 8:50AM

German Services PMI 8:55AM

EU Retails Sales m/m 9:00AM

UK Service PMI 9:30AM

US Non-Farm employment 13:30PM

US ISM non-manufacturing PMI 15:00PM

GBPUSD: 1.2330

GBPEUR: 1.1410

EURUSD: 1.0800