A day removed from recording new highs, U.S. stock indices fell on Friday, as markets reacted to the news that the Current Account deficit was at a 12-year high.
Data released from the commerce department showed that the current account deficit, which typically tracks the movement of goods and investment in and out of the United States, increased by 10.6% to $178.5 billion Q3, which was the highest since 2008.
The news saw the likes of the S&P 500 and Dow Jones fall 0.73% each in the early afternoon, with the NASDAQ was lower by 0.34%
Despite the bearish sentiment today, Tesla was able to rally by over 2.7% (as of writing), recording a new high in the process.
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Euro gains as Bariner says, only” hours” left to agree a deal
Another day, and another twist in the Brexit storyline, as the optimism members in the EU had to start the week, has begun to fade.
After claiming earlier in the week that there was a path to a trade deal, the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier today stated that, “We have little time remaining, just a few hours, to work through these negotiations in a useful fashion if we want the agreement to enter into force on the 1st January”.
He went on to say that, “There is a chance of getting an agreement but the path to such an agreement is very narrow.”
In response to Barnier’s comments, Boris Johnson told members of the British media that negotiations were “looking difficult”.
Germany’s DAX 30 and the UK’s FTSE 100 were down 0.27% and 0.33% respectively.
UK Retail Sales fall in November
As we head into Christmas week, data from the UK showed that Retail Sales fell in November, as a result of the national lockdown.
The drop, which was the biggest since the original lockdown in March/April, showed that overall retail sales volumes dropped 3.8%, after a 1.3% increase in October.
Despite Retail Sales falling, shoppers appear to remain optimistic about a post-COVID-19 society, as the data also showed that Consumer Confidence hit its highest level in 8-years.
Quote of the day – “Stop trying to predict where the market is heading, and instead focus on nailing down decent profits”.
Michael Venezia
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