Weekly Trading Report 21 February 2011 - Last Week's Trading Highlights
China hit the headlines at the start of the week, officially overtaking Japan as the world's second-largest economy, and underlining its importance to the global economic resurgence. Rising inflation was also in the spotlight, as core rates in China, the UK and the US increased to 4.9%, 4% and 0.2% respectively.
While the Chinese central bank can afford to raise interest rates to combat price growth, its western counterparts will be reluctant to follow suit and risk derailing the recovery. Wednesday's BoE report sought to play down expectations of an imminent interest rate hike, despite inflation now reaching double the 2% target.
In the UK, consumer confidence took a six-point dive to 47 in January according to Nationwide figures on Wednesday, while the ONS reported a 2400 increase in jobless claims in December and an unemployment rate of 7.9%. Despite this the FTSE consolidated its position above 6000.
In the US, markets were bullish with the Dow and S&P 500 closing above 12,300 and 1340 respectively on Thursday, responding to positive housing starts data, and strong manufacturing figures from New York and Philadelphia. However, Middle Eastern concerns still loom large, and with violent clashes spreading to Bahrain, markets may experience pressure if the situation develops.
In company news, FTSE shares Barclays and BAE Systems reported contrasting full-year figures on Tuesday and Thursday respectively. The former boasted an increased pre-tax profit of 32% compared to a year earlier, while the latter saw a disappointingly low year-on-year sales rise of just 1.8%.
Mining giant BHP Billiton unveiled record first-half earnings of $10.5 billion on Wednesday, up 72% from a year earlier, while peer Anglo American also released positive full-year figures on Friday with earnings of $4.98 billion. In the US, Dell almost doubled its full-year net income to $2.6 billion, up from $1.4 billion last year.
IG Index
- Live Prices, Charts, Indices, Equities, Commodities, Forex and more >> read the
IG Index Review.
Weekly Trading Report 21 February 2011 - The Week Ahead
Indicators
In a relatively quiet week for UK data, attention will be focused on Tuesday's public finances, Wednesday's release of the latest MPC minutes and Friday's preliminary Q4 GDP data. The last two in particular will be scrutinised for hints as to March's interest rate decision.
Economic surveys are the flavour of the week in the US with the Richmond Fed manufacturing report and the University of Michigan's influential confidence survey due on Tuesday and Friday respectively. Final-quarter GDP figures are also unveiled on a busy end to the US week.
Company Results and Reports
Following Barclays' annual results last Tuesday, the online spread betting markets will be watching Royal Bank of Scotland on Thursday and Lloyds Banking Group on Friday. It's another packed week over the Atlantic, with retailing titans Macy's, Wal-Mart and Home Depot all reporting on Tuesday, alongside home computer giant Hewlett-Packard.
The above content does not constitute investment advice. Neither Online-Spread-Betting.com nor IG Index accepts any responsibility for any use that may be made of the above.
Remember that financial spread betting is a leveraged product and can result in losses that exceed your initial deposit. Spread betting may not be suitable for everyone, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved.
IG Index
- Live Prices, Charts, Indices, Equities, Commodities, Forex and more >> read the
IG Index Review.
For previous weeks see below.
Note - Spread Betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment, it may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.
'Financial Spread Betting 21 February 2011', Review by D. Jones, last update: 21-Feb-11
Related articles:
Online Spread Betting, 6-Jun-11,
Online Spread Betting News: Highlights of last week's spread betting markets and a look at the factors that will influence the week ahead plus company releases, economic news and...see: Online Spread Betting
Financial Spread Betting 4 April 2011, 4-Apr-11,
Financial Spread Betting 4 April 2011: Construction firms were on the rise, with building supplies firm Wolseley returning to profit in the first half of the year and house builder Bellway reporting profit up...see: Financial Spread Betting 4 April 2011
Financial Spread Betting 21 March 2011, 21-Mar-11,
Financial Spread Betting 21 March 2011: On Thursday the Japanese yen reached ¥76.25 against the US dollar, its highest level since the end of World War II. The BoJ continued to pour in further funds to stabilise...see: Financial Spread Betting 21 March 2011
Looking to improve your trading results? Get free trading tips and trading analysis as well as the latest trading offers »
Trading News.
Risk Warning:
Spread Betting carries a high level of risk
to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment,
it may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you only
speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully
understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.
Disclaimer:
Online-Spread-Betting.com does not endorse the information and
analysis available on this site. It is provided purely for information
purposes and is delivered as a personal view of the writer. Under no circumstances
is the information hereon to be used or considered as, an offer to sell, or a
solicitation of any offer to buy. The website content does not constitute investment
advice and neither the individual contributor nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accepts any
responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.
* Tax Free Trading:
Tax law is subject to change. It may also differ if you pay tax in a jurisdiction outside the UK.
