Asia
Shares in the Asia-Pacific region rallied on Tuesday after an early end to the US government shutdown gave Wall Street a boost. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was the biggest riser, gaining 1.66% to just below 33,000 points, a new record high.
Japan indices joined in the rally, with both Nikkei and Topix indices rising more than 1%, as the Bank of Japan left rates on hold and said left inflation and economic growth forecasts unchanged. The lack of hints about tightening monetary policy from Bank Governor Kuroda took the edge of the recent yen gains, and allowed Japanese shares to catch up with the progess seen across the region so far this year.
Europe
Budget airline easyJet (EZJ) was the biggest riser on the FTSE 100 this morning after another upbeat trading update, this time for the last quarter of 2017, the company’s first quarter. Revenue was up by over 14% at £1.14 billion on the same period a year ago, with passenger numbers up 8%.
Broadcaster Sky (SKY) was one of the strongest gainers on the blue-chip index as the UK competition regulator said the takeover by 21st Century Fox (FOXA) could be against the public interest.
The CMA said that the deal would lead to the Murdoch Family Trust having “too much control over news providers in the UK across all media platforms” and “too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda”. Sky News is at the heart of the CMA’s concerns over the deal. The regulator’s final decision is not due until early May 2017.
The UK government received some upbeat news on the release of borrowing figures for December. Public sector borrowing was £2.6 billion in December 2017, £2.5 billion lower than in December 2016. Surging VAT receipts and a one-off rebate from the European Union all helped boost the government’s income at the end of last year.
The World Economic Forum kicks off officially in Davos, Switzerland today – debates include “Are we heading for a new financial crisis?” and the future of capitalism.
Eurozone exchanges were broadly higher after the US markets shook off recent caution relating to the government shutdown.
North America
Stock market futures suggest that markets are likely to rally on Tuesday after an unexpectedly early end to the political impasse.
Today, Verizon (VZ), J&J (JNJ), Kimberley Clark (KMB) are some of the biggest names to report in the thick of the latest earnings season.
Netflix (NFLX) reported rising subscriber numbers after hours on Monday and the company’s shares surged around 9% in pre-market trading. The company is now worth over $100 billion.
Friday sees the release of fourth-quarter GDP figures for the US economy.
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