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European stocks closed in red Wednesday.

 

The STOXX Europe 600, which includes around 90% of the market capitalization of the European market in 17 countries, was the worst performer of the day, shedding 1.31 points, or 0.29%, to 452.07.

 

The UK’s FTSE 100 fell 12 points, or 0.16%, to end the session at 7,744. Germany’s DAX 30 lost 11 points, or 0.08%, to 15,081.

 

France’s CAC 40 posted a 6.6-points, or 0.09%, loss to close at 7,043.

 

Italy’s FTSE MIB fell 9 points, or 0.03%, to 25,875. Spain’s IBEX 35 declined 9.6 points, or 0.11%, to end at 8,957.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

US stocks closed mixed Wednesday, a day before the release of key inflation figures that the Federal Reserve watches closely.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose nearly 10 points, or 0.03%, to finish at 33,743.84 as the blue-chip index strongly rebounded from a 400-point loss during the session.

 

The S&P 500, on the other hand, ended the session almost flat, losing less than a point, or 0.02%, to 4,016.22.

 

The tech-heavy Nasdaq decreased 21 points, or 0.18%, to close at 11,313.36.

 

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, fell 0.8% to 19.05, while the 10-year US Treasury yield fell 0.5% to 3.451%.

 

The dollar index lost 0.24% to 101.67, while the euro added 0.26% to $1.0913 against the greenback.

 

Precious metals reversed course and climbed back into positive territory, with gold adding 0.4% to $1,945 per ounce and silver rising 0.9% to $23.89.

 

Crude oil prices were also in the green, with global benchmark Brent crude increasing 0.4% to $86.46 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude at $80.56, a 0.5% daily gain.

 

The Fed’s preferred and most reliable inflation indicators — the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index and the Core PCE Price Index — for the fourth quarter of 2022 will be released before Thursday’s market opening at 8.30 a.m. EDT.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

 

Cryptocurrency exchange platform Luno announced on Wednesday it will slash workforce by 35% due to market turbulence.

 

The year “2022 has been an incredibly tough year for the broader tech industry and in particular the crypto market. Luno unfortunately hasn’t been immune to this turbulence, which has affected our overall growth and revenue numbers,” Marcus Swanepoel, founder, and CEO, said in a statement.

 

He said the decision is a result of the global economic downturn and a larger slump in the technology industry overall during the past few months.

 

A “crypto winter” and series of shocks involving other crypto firms such as FTX and Three Arrows Capital have also had an overall effect on the crypto industry, he added.

 

Swanepoel said those developments impacted Luno on the capital side, causing a more constrained funding environment, while the crypto market’s focus shifted from long-term investment to shorter-term profitability.

 

“While we anticipated a downturn and proactively planned ahead with a business and funding model that can be resilient to some of these factors, the sheer scale and speed of all of this happening, and all at the same time, has put significant strain on our original plan,” he added.

 

Luno’s announcement comes as tech giants including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google’s parent firm Alphabet lay off employees due to recession fears, economic downturn, and decline in advertisement revenues.

 

Many crypto firms faced financial hurdles last year, which was dubbed as “crypto winter” that included FTX, Three Arrows Capital, Voyager, Celsius, Genesis, and BlockFi.

 

Luno has more than 960 employees with over 9 million customers in 43 countries, according to its LinkedIn profile.

 

It is owned by Digital Currency Group (DCG) — the owner of digital currency asset management firm Grayscale Investments that had around $50 billion funds under management in 2021.

 

The DCG-owned cryptocurrency platform Genesis’ lending units filed for bankruptcy last week.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

US stocks were down at the opening bell Wednesday with weak results from major companies, including Microsoft and Boeing.

 

The Dow fell 242 points, or 0.72%, to 33,490 at 9.36 a.m. EDT (1436GMT). The S&P 500 lost 48 points, or 1.2% to 3,968.

 

The tech-heavy Nasdaq decreased 193 points, or 1.7%, to 11,141 points.

 

Microsoft’s stock plummeted 3.9% after it said late Tuesday that revenue rose just 2% in the October-December period — the slowest increase in the company’s history since 2016.

 

Boeing shares were down 1.4% at the time as the aerospace manufacturer announced Wednesday that it saw more than $5 billion net loss last year.

 

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, rose 4.7% to 20.11, while the 10-year US Treasury yield fell 0.8% to 3.440%.

 

The dollar index was flat at 101.93, whereas the euro added 0.5% to $1.0890 against the greenback.

 

Precious metals were in negative territory, with gold trimming 0.34% to $1,930 per ounce and silver shedding 0.3% to $23.60.

 

Crude oil prices were also down, with global benchmark Brent crude losing 0.2% to $85.95 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate at $80.05 — a 0.1% daily loss.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

European stock markets closed Monday with gains.

 

The STOXX Europe 600, which includes around 90% of the market capitalization of the European market in 17 countries, was up 2.37 points, or 0.52%, to 454.49.

 

The UK’s FTSE 100 increased 14 points, or 0.18%, to end the session at 7,784.

 

Germany’s DAX 30 added 69 points, or 0.46%, to 15,102.

 

France’s CAC 40 was the best performer of the day by soaring 36 points, or 0.52%, to close at 7,032.

 

Italy’s FTSE MIB posted a 45-point, or 0.18%, gain to finish at 25,821. Spain’s IBEX 35 rose 25 points, or 0.29%, to end the day at 8,944.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

Major US stock market indexes rallied Monday to close at their highest levels in a month.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 254.07 points, or 0.76%, to finish at 33,629.56. The S&P 500 added 47.20 points, or 1.19% to 4,019.81.

 

The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped almost 224 points, or 2.01%, to end the first trading day of the week at 11,364.41.

 

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, fell 0.2% to 19.81. The 10-year US Treasury yield rose 1.1% to 3.523%.

 

The dollar index added 0.06% to 102.07, while the euro increased 0.14% to $1.0870 against the greenback.

 

Precious metals were mixed, with gold rising 0.3% to $1,931 per ounce but silver shedding 2% to $23.46.

 

Crude oil prices were up, with global benchmark Brent crude gaining 0.6% to $88.16 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude at $81.68, a 0.05% daily gain.

 

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 closed lower Thursday for the third straight session.

The blue-chip Dow fell 252.40 points, or 0.76%, to finish at 33,044.56. The S&P 500 lost 30 points, or 0.76% to 3,898.85.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 104.74 points, or 0.96%, to close at 10,852.27.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, rose 0.9% to 20.52. The 10-year US Treasury yield added 0.6% to 3.397%.

The dollar index fell 0.3% to 102.08, while the euro gained 0.3% to $1.0830 against the greenback.

Precious metals were in positive territory, with gold rising 1.5% to $1,933 per ounce and silver gaining 1.6% to $23.86.

Crude oil prices were up, with global benchmark Brent crude gaining 1.6% to $86.33 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate at $80.83 — a 1.3% daily gain.

Source: Anadolu Agency

China’s retail sales are expected to recover after the lifting of coronavirus restrictions but the recovery in consumption is likely to be volatile and more difficult than those in many other major economies, Fitch Ratings said Thursday.

Some of the major reasons behind this are a weak employment and income outlook, declining home prices, rising household leverage, and a lack of direct stimulus, the global rating agency said in a statement.

“The surge in infections in China is reflected in the 1.8% year-on-year contraction in retail sales in December 2022, which led to a 0.2% decline for the full year,” it said.

The agency, however, said it expects strong growth in retail sales of essential goods such as food and beverages, adding apparel and cosmetics products, which saw sluggish demand last year due to mobility restrictions, are likely to see stronger growth as demand returns.

It said a slowdown in the housing sector has undermined Chinese consumers’ wealth, which accounted for around 59% of their urban household assets in 2019, and noted that “rising household indebtedness has also impaired Chinese consumers’ purchasing power.”

Source: Anadolu Agency

Retail sales volumes in the UK unexpectedly shrank by 1% on a monthly basis in December 2022, according to official data released on Friday.

The market forecast was a 0.5% hike for the month, following a downwardly revised 0.5% decrease in November.

Compared to the pre-pandemic level in February 2020, total retail sales were 13.6% higher in value terms, but volumes were 1.7% lower, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

On an annual basis, retail sales volumes fell 5.8% in December.

For all of 2022, retail sales volumes narrowed by 3.0% “as the lifting of restrictions on hospitality led to a return to eating out, and rising prices and the cost of living affected sales volumes,” the ONS said.

Source: Anadolu Agency