Global Market Report - March 2, 2018

Fears of a global trade war hit already fragile sentiment in equity markets

James Gard 2 March, 2018 | 11:06AM
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Asia

The imposition of trade tariffs on steel and aluminium products by President Trump ignited fears of a trade war on Thursday and unsettled already fragile sentiment on Wall Street. The 420 point fall in the Dow Jones pushed the index below 25,000 and set the tone for another selloff in Asia-Pacific markets. Japan’s Nikkei bore the brunt of the weakness, losing 2.5% or 542 points on Thursday’s close. At 21,181 points, the Nikkei 225 is off 1,000 points since the start of the week.

The stock market’s weakness was compounded by a strengthening in the yen after Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who suggested that the country’s ultra-loose monetary policy would start to be unwound in 2019. The dollar has come under pressure since the start of the year against the yen – trading around 113 yen in early January, the dollar is now threatening the 100 yen level.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng joined in the global selloff with a drop of 1.5% to 30,583 points, while both the Shanghai and Shenzhen Indices were off by less than 1% on Thursday’s close.

Europe

The FTSE 100 was trading around 50 points lower by midmorning, dragged down by weakness in leading mining stocks. Trade restrictions in products such as aluminium and steel are likely to directly affect the profitability of companies like Anglo American (AAL), Glencore (GLEN) and Rio Tinto (RIO).

In the eurozone, Italy’s FTSE MIB dropped 2% ahead of the weekend’s elections. German and French exchanges were also sold off.

North America

Canada’s GDP for December will be in focus on Friday – the North American economy is forecast to have grown by 3.4% on December 2016.

Futures markets suggest that Thursday’s selloff in US markets is likely to continue on Friday as fears over trade persist.

Among companies reporting are retailers JC Penney (JCP) and Foot Locker (FL).

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.

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Securities Mentioned in Article

Security NamePriceChange (%)Morningstar
Rating
Anglo American PLC2,179.00 GBX-0.14Rating
Foot Locker Inc21.71 USD0.46
Glencore PLC474.30 GBX-0.15Rating
Rio Tinto PLC Registered Shares5,380.00 GBX0.17Rating

About Author

James Gard

James Gard  is senior editor for Morningstar.co.uk

 

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