Norwegian CPI (for September) came in 3% YoY vs 3.2% exp. and 2.6% previously (0.3% MoM vs 0.5% exp. and -0.9% previously)
Japanese yen strengthened slightly after BoJ member, Ryozo Himino signaled that the bank is ready to raise rates further, if economic expansion will materialize. Himino signaled that Japan's economy started to move, and Japanese monetary policy should move also, accordingly.
Shares of British pharmaceutical giant, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.US) more than 5% today amid $2.2 billion settlement deal in US Zantac lawsuits, caused by 'cancer-causing' concerns. The deal will resolve 93% (almost 80,000) of US lawsuits. The company will recognize this loss in Q3 results, this year.
The tone of the ECB's Minutes is taking on a more hawkish tone. Bankers are concerned about a rebound in inflation, which could imply a slower pace of interest rate cuts in the Eurozone in the medium term.
The National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) pushed Celsius Holdings (CELH.US) stock price up more than 12% to its highest level in more than three weeks.
Natural gas inventories rose by 82 billion cubic feet last week, slightly higher than the expected 76 billion and higher than the previous 55 billion cubic feet.
September CPI 2024 rose by 0.3%, beating Augusts's increase, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Annually, the CPI increased by 2.4%, higher than expected. Significant monthly changes included a 1.77% rise in the shelter index and a 0.53% decrease in the energy index.
Weekly jobless claims were higher than expected and increased to the highest level since June 2023.
Initial Jobless Claims: actual 258k; forecast 230k; previous 225k;
Hang Seng extended the wave of gains today, adding more than 1.8%, with CHN.cash 2.3% higher. .
Spanish SPA35 is currently the worst performing and is 0.78% down, followed by SUI20. French CAC40 and UK100 are slightly lower. Italian ITA40 is best performing index with a rise of 0.5%
US equities are set for a lower close, with the Russell 2000 leading losses, down 0.6%. The S&P 500 is down by 0.09% with Nasdaq 100 0.07% higher.
Delta Air Lines is losing slightly more than 1.5% today after reporting lower than expected financial results. The company's results were weighed down by one-time losses related to a systems' failure during an IT outage, however the company also reported lower than expected forecasts for 4Q.
Domino’s stock price declines today around -1.2% after reporting lower than expected financial results for 3Q24 and issuing cautious guidance for the whole 2024.
Oil started today's session very calmly, but early in the afternoon, oil returned to gains, continuing the strong movements from last week. Both Brent and WTI are 3.5% higher, currency trading at $79.42 and $75.98 respectively.
The strongest currency today is the Swiss Franc, gaining more than 0.6% to both Euro and USD. NZD is also strong and losing only to CHF.
The cryptocurrency market is heading lower today. Ethereum is up 0.6%, Dogecoin falls 2.6%, and Bitcoin is 1% lower, to around 60,133 USD.
Precious metals are gaining today: gold rises by 0.56%, silver is up 1.52%, while platinum is 1.7% higher.