There was a sense of weariness to the markets this Wednesday, caught between the election-slash-trade deal over-stimulation of the last few sessions, and the awareness that the end of the year draws ever closer.
Capturing the mood, the Dow Jones barely moved after the bell. Sat a big yawn and stretch away from 28300, the US index remains in the vicinity of its all-time highs without showing much appetite for another gold medal sprint.
The CAC was similarly laconic, adding a handful of points. The DAX, on the other hand, shed 0.4%, even though the German Ifo business climate reading beat expectations.
The day’s only real major index-winner was the FTSE, which knocked on the door of 7550 – a level last properly seen at the end of July – following a 25 point increase. Those gains came as the pound remained in funk, shedding 0.4% against a rebounding dollar and 0.1% against the euro. Sterling has had a rather sharp comedown since its effervescent reaction to the UK election – now it is facing weeks (and months (and maybe years)) of more Brexit grind.
Tomorrow, at least, it has the distraction the latest UK retail sales data – forecast to rise from -0.1% to 0.3% month-on-month – alongside one of the final few appearances from Bank of England chief Mark Carney, as the MPC votes on interest rates.
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