Midday Brief
Market sentiment in the broader financial markets is currently mixed going into the United States trading session as European stock markets trade in negative territory, while US stocks look to set to open in the green once again.
The Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 also posted huge gains on Thursday as President Biden confirmed outside the Oval Office to reporters that US senators were working together on a bipartisan agreement for a massive $1.2 trillion spending bill.
Naturally, blue-chip stocks in the Dow exploded, while even industrial and material stocks on the S&P 500 added to their already strong weekly gain. As Wall Street opens it is apparent that investors liked what they saw and believe that the House and Senate are close to getting the massive spending bill across the line.
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Market commentators are suggesting that the bill will need to be signed before July 4th to give the bill a realistic shot of being passed into law. The US labour market is still a concern so for now with a weak US jobs market the bill has some real momentum.
Action elsewhere is fairly muted with investors still undecided about the US dollar and gold. Both are mixed intraday. The New Zealand dollar is actually the strongest performing major currency against the greenback intraday.
The EURUSD has held firm and is apparently being capped by a huge option expiration taking place around the 1.1950 to 1.1960 area today. The EURGBP pair is also being supported by sterling weakness.
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Bitcoin has started to slide going into the US trading session as investors weigh up the possibility of massive price dump by Grayscale Investments as shares are unlocked for investors who bought into GBTC in January this year.
Traders should be aware that the United States economy will release Personal Income and PCE dater later today as well as the Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey, which is expected to show a slight uptick in investor confidence from last month.
The real focus is going to be on US stocks and whether they will be able to hold onto yesterday’s blockbuster gains, and indeed if some of the optimism over the infrastructure spending bill will spread across the pond and boost European equity markets.