Stock markets in Europe are slightly in the red today as volatility is low and traders remain cautious about the political situation in Germany. Angela Merkel stated she is open to the idea of a new election, but it is a process that will have to be instigated by the President of Germany.
EasyJet (LON:EZJ) shares are up after the airline produced a good set of results in an environment which has seen come of its rivals exit the market. Full-year revenue rose by 8.1%, and it saw a 9.7% rise in the number of passengers to 80.2 million – a record higher. If you strip out the adverse currency movement, the company saw annual pre-tax profits rise by 3%. The stock is up 4.6% today and has been rising since October 2016, and if the bullish sentiment continues it could target 1430p – its 200-week moving average.
Compass Group (LON:CPG) shares are down 3.4% despite a solid year. The company saw revenue and pre-tax profits rise by 15.1% and 18.1% respectively. The operations in North America are making up for weaker trading in Continental Europe. The annual dividend was upped by 5.7%. The share price has been falling since June, and it could target its 100-week moving average at 1492p.
GBP/USD is higher again today as traders are feeling more optimistic about the UK prospects of reaching a deal in relation to be Brexit. Prime Minister May is willing to pay a higher ‘divorce bill’ to the EU, and this is seen as a step in the right direction. UK public sector net borrowing for October came at £7.46 billion while the consensus was to tick up to £6.6 billion from £5.32 in September, which was then revised down to £4.43 billion.
EUR/USD has benefitted from a softer US dollar this morning as the announcement last night that Fed Chief Janet Yellen will resign from the US central bank when Jerome Powell takes over from her in the New Year. The US central bank will have 4 vacant seats to fill, and dealers are unsure what the make-up will look like, and that is adding to the dollar's dip.
We are expecting the Dow Jones to open up 4 points at 23,434, and we are calling the S&P 500 up 1 point at 2583.
At 3pm (UK time) the US will announce the existing home sales for October, and the consensus is for a reading of 5.42 million, and that would be an improvement on September’s 5.39 million.
Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE) will announce their quarterly figures today.
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