Global markets
Global equities continued to pull back last week, driven in large part by the tech-heavy NASDAQ-100 Index. Compared to the previous week’s news (SoftBank and Tesla) there was little fundamentally new that triggered the further equity sell-off – suggesting this remains nothing more than an overdue retreat in some popular U.S.

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Global markets
After six positive weeks in a row, U.S. equities suffered an overdue pullback last week, driven by the high-flying tech sector. This appeared to reflect the combination of Tesla surprisingly being excluded from the latest S&P 500 Index re-balance, and revelations that a major Asian tech investor, SoftBank, had been a huge buyer of call options within the U.S.

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Global markets
Continued generally encouraging U.S. economic data, further vaccine hopes and confirmation of an even more dovish Fed policy all conspired to support global equity markets again last week. The S&P 500 rose 3.3%, marking the 5th weekly gain in a row.
U.S. economic data continue to paint a picture of an economy gradually recovering from the COVID shock.

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Global markets
U.S. stocks edged ever higher last week, despite a lack of progress on extending fiscal stimulus and the Fed’s reluctance to consider further monetary measures despite its ongoing concerns for the economy. The Fed’s failure to hint at new stimulus also helped stem the slide in the $US last week,

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Global markets
Global equities pushed higher last week despite a continued U.S. impasse over further fiscal stimulus. Talk of a Russian vaccine and still generally encouraging U.S. economic data helped keep equity bears at bay. The risk-on sentiment was also evident in a spike in bond yields, correction in gold prices,

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Global markets
Better than expected U.S. economic data and stimulus hopes continued to buoy global equities last week, with the S&P 500 now only 1% from its previous peak level. The FAANG stocks have a lot to do with this performance, but even the S&P 500 equally-weighted index is now 7.5% from its previous peak level.

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Global markets
Global equities saw fit to focus on the positives last week, taking heart in the Fed’s renewed pledge to support growth and in the awe-inspiring ongoing strength in tech sector earnings.
Indeed, in another case of “bad news is good news” the Fed last week again provided a sobering outlook for the economy,

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Global markets
Global equities tried hard to break higher early last week on the back of more hopeful vaccine news and Europe’s long-awaited stimulus package, though ended the week on the back foot due to renewed U.S.-China tensions and higher than expected U.S. weekly jobless claims.
America’s ongoing COVID-19 battle and Congressional wrangling over the next U.S.

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Global markets
Global equities eked out further gains last week, largely reflecting more vaccine hopes, good JP Morgan earnings and general relief that more widespread lockdowns were not re-imposed in the United States. Indeed, the tech-heavy NASDAQ actually slipped back last week while the S&P 500 gained, with a modest rotation into smalls caps and ‘value’

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Global markets
Global equities pushed higher last week despite a rising CV-19 case count, with investors taking heart from a continuing ‘re-opening’ bounce in the data, further somewhat encouraging drug news and – most important of all – several major U.S. states still resisting pressure to impose lockdowns of the type seen earlier this year.

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