Market Rundown
Republican Roy Moore has lost his Alabama Senate seat
-Dixons Carphone (LON:DC) shares rally on mobile unit plans
-Tui (LON:TUIT) shares rise after own-brand hotel sales outstrip airline losses
-Eurex open delayed
-UK unemployment data up next
-Fed meeting today
-Interactive brokers is now allowing short-selling for Bitcoin Futures
-Oil higher after bigger than expected API inventories drawdown
Markets open mixed before the Fed
European stock markets opened mixed on Wednesday, supported by some well-received corporate results but weighed down by caution ahead of the Federal Reserve interest rate decision. It’s a typically low-vol lead up to the FOMC.
The FTSE 100 is sitting on top of the 6500 handle and looks poised for more gains should the recent sell-off in the British pound accelerate. A Tory rebellion against Theresa May in favour of a “meaningful” vote on the Brexit deal should spell more weakness for sterling. A “meaningful vote” probably ensures a softer Brexit but in the meantime it threatens May’s leadership and wider political stability.
US futures point higher despite Roy Moore
Stocks in the US look for a positive open despite Roy Moore’s election loss and its potential to disrupt tax reform plans. The Republican majority slipping to a thin 51-49 reduces the ease at which tax reform agreement can be reached. We think the political will for tax cuts mean they still happen. Moore’s loss just narrows the odds on a delay in tax reform being signed off by Donald trump until early 2018.
Dixons Carphone phone sales slump
Shares of Dixons Carphone have rallied after a dramatic fall in half-year profits prompted the electronics retailer to rethink its mobile phones division. The disappointing results have been exaggerated by the delayed release of the new iPhone models. If you can look through the iPhone factor and take heed from restructuring plans, the outlook looks better than it could have done. CEO Seb James’ newly announced plan to reduce ‘capital intensity’ sounds a lot like the store sales that investors were looking for.