Investors are braced for a high-intensity week in equity and bond markets. The Houthi attacks on Riyadh are escalating tensions and putting any prospect of an imminent easing of the situation further out of reach.
Brent is at $104.395, WTI at $91.080, the US 10-year yield at 5.2370% and France’s equivalent at 4.860%, with bond traders on alert. The Chamaeleon discusses the leading candidates for a crisis, with France the most at risk, followed by Italy and Britain.
Investors are focused on oil markets, bonds and corporate earnings, with Wall Street in the spotlight.
The curtain rises tomorrow, after today’s holiday in New York, with JPMC, Wells Fargo and Citigroup. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) is also in focus on Thursday. The particular interest is understandable given its importance to the global semiconductor market and investment in artificial intelligence.
Asian markets were correcting earlier, while DAX futures were up a modest 0.33% after limited losses last week. The index stands at 25,327 points, with bulls holding a slight edge after Friday’s 1.17% rise.
Investors on Euronext Athens are starting from considerably lower price levels, with the General Index at 2,559.18 points, the banking index at 2,961.13 and the FTSE 25 at 6,547.03.
With average daily turnover of €395 million, and trading volumes lower on corrective rises than in sessions when the market falls, the market appears to still be repositioning after the upgrade and rebalancing. That is one possibility, as the Chamaeleon notes, alongside the normal practice of taking partial profits.
Nine-month returns justify the profit-taking now under way, as do comments by leading foreign institutions (the IMF, S&P Ratings, etc.) on the (over)concentration of lending/financing in two or three sectors and, consequently, the extent of the domestic banking sector’s exposure.
It is encouraging that, for now, systemic banks have remained outside the crosshairs of sellers of government bonds. The breakdown of their portfolios of Greek and other European countries’ bonds is indicative.
The banking sector remains the leading sector, with sellers having the upper hand, but potential buyers are on standby after last week’s steep correction. Anastasia Papaioannou reports on the new shareholder profile and the Bank of Cyprus management’s acquisition plans. Panikos Nikolaou’s comments on issues including possible strategic partnerships are interesting, but the Cypriot group’s chief executive was referring to a “second investment phase”, not the immediate future.
Dr Panos Dantis focuses on signals from cash flows at six listed companies.
Today’s session is expected to be tactical, according to a broker who estimates that investors’ moves will be more targeted and less broad-based. Stock-picking was the strategy on Friday, with purchases in individual shares. AKTOR was a case in point: following analysis by Ambrosia Capital, it gained 6.24% to €9.70, with 1.15 million shares changing hands.
Other developments ahead include the public offering for the listing of Capital Maritime Finance (starting tomorrow), the presentation of the joint energy storage investment by Metlen- Karatzis (the day after tomorrow), and the announcement of results by Papoutsanis management (on Thursday).