Morning Briefing: World stocks rally despite data

World stocks rally despite data... More auto parts could come from Asia under trade deal... Russians can now file for bankruptcy... Saudi Arabia suffers from oil decline...

Steve Randall
World stocks rally despite data
World stock markets have started the new month and quarter with gains despite further indications of China’s weakness.

Asian markets have closed higher, although Shanghai is closed for a public holiday. The region picked up from a higher Wall Street lead and shrugged off data from Japan which reveals lower sentiment among manufacturers. Data showing China’s manufacturing sector further declining has boosted calls for further stimulus from Beijing.

European equities, which closed around 2 per cent higher Wednesday, are also broadly up so far Thursday. Auto makers shared positive deals and sales data and even VW managed a 3.1 per cent gain on news that it is cutting costs ahead of the impending fines and legal costs from the emissions scandal.

Wall Street and the TSX are expected to open higher. New York will be watching data including jobless claims, vehicle sales and manufacturing PMI.
 
  Latest 1 month ago 1 year ago
 
North America (previous session)
US Dow Jones 16,284.70 (+1.47 per cent) +1.41 per cent -3.09 per cent
TSX Composite 13,306.96 (+2.07 per cent) -1.30 per cent -10.12 per cent
 
Europe (at 6.15am ET)
UK FTSE 6,147.94 (+1.42 per cent) +1.48 per cent - 6.25 per cent
German DAX 9,694.50 (+0.35 per cent) -3.21 per cent +3.33 per cent
 
Asia (at close)
China CSI 300 3,202.95 (+0.76 per cent) -4.73 per cent +30.68 per cent
Japan Nikkei 17,722.42 (+1.92 per cent) -2.44 per cent +10.20 per cent
 
Other Data (at 6.15am ET)
Oil (Brent) Oil (WTI) Gold Can. Dollar
49.38
(+2.09 per cent)
46.25
(+2.57 per cent)
1113.10
(-0.19 per cent)
U$0.7533
 
Aus. Dollar
U$0.7073
 
More auto parts could come from Asia under trade deal
Canada and Mexico have shown willingness to allow more auto parts from Asia as part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Reuters says that negotiators have made progress on the deal and auto sales and auto parts have been a key issue for some of the partners including Japan. The report said that there is still some way to go as Japan wants the local content of vehicles to be set at a threshold of 32.5 per cent while Canada and Mexico want 45 per cent.
 
Russians can now file for bankruptcy
As Russian authorities try to tackle rising consumer debt new legislation comes into force today which allows citizens to file for bankruptcy. Those with debts above 500,000 roubles, the equivalent of U$7,500 and over three months of missed payments will be able to take the action CNBC reports. Corporate bodies already had the ability to file bankruptcy papers.
 
Saudi Arabia suffers from oil decline
Despite fronting out the decline in oil prices and refusing to consider cutting production, Saudi Arabia is not immune from the effect of lower oil prices. CNN reports that the country is pulling cash out of its investments and selling bonds to raise capital for the first time in 8 years.  
 

LATEST NEWS