Morning Note: A Summary of Market News.

Market News

Federal Reserve official Christopher Waller said there’s no rush to lower US interest rates, adding that recent economic data warrants delaying or reducing the number of cuts this year. Recent price trends were “disappointing” and he wants to see “at least a couple months of better inflation data” before easing. Treasuries slipped on the remarks – the 10-year currently yields 4.21%. Gold moved up towards $2,200 an ounce.

US equity markets closed last night at another record high: S&P 500 (+0.9%), Nasdaq (+0.5%). Amazon announced plans to invest an additional $2.75bn into AI startup Anthropic, bringing its total to $4bn. This morning in Asia markets were mixed: Nikkei 225 (-1.5%); Hang Seng (+1.2%); Shanghai Composite (+0.6%). The FTSE 100 is currently trading 0.3% higher at 7,953. Companies trading ex-dividend today include Melrose (0.52%), Smith & Nephew (1.75%), Prudential (1.49%), and M&G (5.62%).

Bank of England rate cuts should be “a long way off,” Jonathan Haskel told the FT, cautioning against jumping to conclusions based on falling headline inflation. Though he dropped his calls for a rate hike last week, he’s not preparing to vote for a reduction. Official ONS data confirmed UK GDP fell by 0.2%, in line with expectations. Sterling trades at $1.2608 and €1.1681.

UK home sellers accepted an average reduction of 3.9% to the asking price this month, the least since July, Zoopla said. That’s a sign of recovery from a slump that saw over 18 months of markdowns.

When OPEC ministers take stock of global oil markets next week, they’ll see plenty of evidence their production cuts are working. Crude is headed for a solid quarterly gain as supply reductions by Saudi Arabia and its allies combine with surprisingly resilient demand. The oil price currently trades at $85.80 a barrel.

Source: Bloomberg