Daily Global Market Update - Fidelity Worldwide Investment

Daily Global Market Update
24 March, 2015
European markets retreated on profit taking
Stock indices were mixed globally. Some investors took profits while others, especially in Europe
stayed on the sidelines thanks to the ongoing situation with Greece.
United States
Stocks edged higher in afternoon trading following a strong performance last week. However, the
gains disappeared just before the markets closed. Gains ebbed and flowed throughout the day,
tracking energy stocks as crude oil prices were caught between the weakness in the US dollar
and concerns about oversupply. The Dow Jones industrials slipped 0.1%, the S&P retreated
0.2% and the Nasdaq lost 0.3%.
Traders here as well as in Europe monitored a meeting between the leaders of Greece and
Germany for signs of progress in Greece’s debt negotiations. Greece faces a cash crunch in the
coming weeks and is in talks with its European lenders on what steps it must make to receive
more loans. On Monday, Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras committed to keeping a dialogue
open on reforms that would qualify Greece for urgently needed rescue loans.
Gilead Sciences dropped following news that the pharmaceutical company told physicians that
nine patients taking its hepatitis C treatments developed slow heartbeats and that one died.
Kansas City Southern dropped after the railroad cut its full year revenue forecast.
Gold at the afternoon London fixing was up US$3.15 to US$1,186.25. Copper futures were up
4.8% to US$2.89. WTI spot crude was up 76 US cents to US$47.33. Dated Brent spot crude was
up 50 US cents to US$55.82. The US dollar was down against all of its major counterparts
including the euro, yen, pound, Swiss franc and the Canadian and Australian dollars. The Dollar
Index was down 1.4%. The yield on US Treasury 30 year bond was up 1 basis point to 2.51%
while the yield on the 10 year note slipped 2 basis points to 1.91%.
Europe
Stocks were mostly lower Monday following the strong advances of the previous session as
investors decided to take profits. Investors also were cautious ahead of Monday’s meeting
between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. European
Union leaders have asked Greece to come up with a more concrete reform plan in the coming
days so that bailout talks can speed up. The CAC declined 0.6%, the DAX dropped 1.2% and the
SMI slipped 0.3%. The FTSE however, added 0.2%, extending its winning streak to a sixth day,
closing above the 7,000 mark.
HeidelbergCement declined on a broker downgrade. Deutsche Bank was up on reports that the
lender is considering the sale of its retail banking business. Commerzbank also gained. Auto
makers Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler finished lower. Renault and Peugeot also declined. Both
RWE and E.ON retreated. LVMH was down and auto parts maker Valeo also declined. However,
Vivendi advanced. Standard Chartered gained on a broker upgrade. Centamin surged after the
gold miner declared a higher final dividend compared to its initial interim dividend. Carnival and
Weir Group were down on a broker downgrades. Miners BHP Billiton and Glencore advanced.
Asia Pacific
Stocks were mixed Monday despite Friday’s rally in the US. While the Chinese and Japanese
markets hit fresh multi-year highs, Australian shares succumbed to profit taking after sharp gains
last week. A rebound in crude oil prices Friday and a pause in the dollar's recent rally helped to
keep underlying sentiment positive to some extent.
The Shanghai Composite gained for a ninth consecutive day reflecting increasing liquidity and
optimism about the future prospects for corporate earnings growth. The index was up 1.9% to a
near seven year high led by property developers and brokerages. Steelmakers also gained after
China’s Xinhua News Agency said China aims to build three to five giant steel mills and boost the
crude steel output of its top 10 steelmakers to more than 60% of the country's total by 2025. The
Hang Seng added 0.5%.
The Nikkei was up 1.0% at a fresh 15-year high even as the yen traded slightly stronger against
the dollar. Fuji Heavy Industries, Nippon Electric Glass, Sumitomo Heavy Industries and Suzuki
Motor advanced. Sharp rallied on news that Taiwan's contract electronics maker Hon Hai
Precision Industry might make another offer to buy a stake in the Japanese electronics maker.
Toyota Motor gained on reports the automaker is finalizing plans for its first car assembly plant in
Mexico. Japan Wind Development jumped. US private equity firm Bain Capital plans to acquire
the country's third largest wind power company through a tender offer according to Nikkei. Eisai
shares soared after partner Biogen Idec announced positive results from a pre-specified interim
analysis on an experimental drug treating Alzheimer's. Japan Airlines advanced on a Nikkei
report that it is considering a direct service from Tokyo to Dallas in the US. Nintendo, which last
week announced its decision to make mobile apps, also advanced.
Both the S&P/ASX and All Ordinaries retreated 0.3%. Banks were mostly lower while miners
were mixed. The Kospi was virtually unchanged (down 0.65 point). The Sensex slipped 0.2% as
investors exercised caution ahead of the expiry of March series derivative contracts on Thursday.
Global Stock Market Recap
Index
North America
United States
Canada
Europe
UK
France
Germany
Italy
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
End
2014
2015
Mar 20
Mar 23
Daily
Change
Percent Change
Daily
2015
Yr/Yr
Dow
NASDAQ
S&P 500
S&P/TSX Comp**
16576.7
18127.7
18116.0
-11.6
-0.1
1.6
11.3
4176.6
5026.4
5011.0
-15.4
-0.3
5.8
18.6
1848.4
2108.1
2104.4
-3.7
-0.2
2.2
13.3
13621.6
14942.4
14957.2
14.8
0.1
2.2
4.8
FTSE 100
CAC
XETRA DAX
MIB
Ibex 35
OMX Stockholm
30
SMI
6749.1
7022.5
7037.7
15.2
0.2
7.2
7.9
4296.0
5087.5
5054.5
-33.0
-0.6
18.3
18.2
Asia/Pacific
Australia
All Ordinaries
Japan
Nikkei 225
Hong Kong
Hang Seng
S. Korea
Kospi
Singapore
STI
China
Shanghai Comp
India
Sensex 30
Data Source — Haver Analytics
9552.2
12039.4
11895.8
-143.5
-1.2
21.3
29.5
18967.7
23176.7
23057.1
-119.6
-0.5
21.3
11.8
9916.7
11419.6
11452.8
33.2
0.3
11.4
15.5
1333.0
1710.9
1698.4
-12.5
-0.7
16.0
27.2
8203.0
9396.3
9366.2
-30.1
-0.3
4.3
14.2
5353.1
5936.3
5921.0
-15.2
-0.3
9.9
10.4
16291.3
19560.2
19754.4
194.1
1.0
13.2
36.5
23306.4
24375.2
24494.5
119.3
0.5
3.8
12.1
2011.3
2037.2
2036.6
-0.7
0.0
6.3
4.7
3167.4
3412.4
3410.1
-2.3
-0.1
1.3
9.6
2116.0
3617.3
3687.7
70.4
1.9
14.0
78.5
21170.7
28261.1
28192.0
-69.1
-0.2
2.5
27.8
Looking forward*
China, Japan, the Eurozone, France, Germany and the US report flash March manufacturing
PMIs. The UK releases February consumer and producer price indices. The US posts February
consumer prices. FHFA reports the February house price index. New home sales for February
will also be released.
*Note — all releases are listed in local time.
The Longer-Term Perspective
The table below demonstrates that while we may experience some short-term weakness in
markets, the longer-term performance remains encouraging.
Equity markets as at 23/03/2015
Market
% change
12 mths to
23/03/2015
Source: Datastream, Price Index Returns in local currency
% change
12 mths to
23/03/2014
% change
12 mths to
23/03/2013
US: Dow Jones
11.12
12.34
10.94
US: S&P 500
12.75
19.89
US: NASDAQ
17.17
31.80
MSCI Europe
15.37
UK: FTSE All Share
UK: FTSE 100
% change
12 mths to
23/03/2012
% change
12 mths to
23/03/2011
8.23
10.99
11.44
7.67
10.51
5.77
13.70
11.72
10.13
10.49
-4.89
1.05
7.43
4.76
10.89
0.96
3.80
7.33
2.57
9.19
1.02
2.15
Germany: DAX
27.32
18.10
13.09
2.81
13.08
France: CAC 40
16.59
14.99
8.46
-11.18
-0.98
Netherlands: All Share
25.72
11.20
5.50
-9.18
5.22
Italy: S&P MIB
9.94
30.70
-2.67
-24.03
-4.69
Switzerland: SMI
12.99
7.04
24.10
-0.25
-9.03
Spain: IBEX 35
13.92
20.69
0.58
-22.15
-3.26
Sweden: OMX
25.67
12.96
10.34
-2.60
8.07
Japan: Nikkei
38.88
15.28
23.24
5.95
-12.29
MSCI Asia Pacific ex Japan
13.54
2.26
6.44
-5.21
5.85
Hong Kong: Hang Seng
14.26
-3.07
7.00
-9.45
8.76
Australia: S&P/ASX 200
11.58
7.46
16.32
-8.21
-4.56
China: Shanghai Shenzhen
300
83.99
-17.55
2.56
-21.81
-0.32
Anne D Picker
Chief Economist
Econoday
Important Information
Econoday Inc. is a US company that provides financial commentary and
indicators to industry professionals. All information provided and views
expressed are those of Econoday. Reference in this document to
specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities,
but is included for the purposes of illustration only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of
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