Weekly Round Up
The FTSE 100 opened stronger today, though broadly unchanged on the week. Friday’s positive rise follows a volatile trading week as European Covid-19 cases continue to increase.
The EU has seen internal tensions mount due to the row over the distribution of vaccine supplies. Growing ‘vaccine nationalism’ is testing the fabric of the EU which has led Brussels to lash out at the UK, threatening to block supplies from the Netherlands. Tensions have calmed this week as both the UK and EU look to create a ‘win-win’ situation for their combined citizens.
US markets also remain relatively unchanged on the week, however not without volatility. Thursday saw the Dow Jones turnaround more than 500 points in the afternoon, having seen a fall of 350 points earlier in the trading day. The turnaround came as jobless claims hit the lowest level in over a year and economic recovery data posted better than expected results.
The yield on the US Treasury 10-year rose a further 0.04 percentage points to 1.67 per cent as investors continue to sell government debt on the basis of inflation fears.
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