Gerald Fitzgerald’s Market Review September 23rd

LAST WEEK IN 30 SECONDS. . .

Last week began with a spike in oil prices as markets came to terms with the disruption of global supply after drone attacks damaged two key oil facilities in Saudi Arabia. The damage reduced supply by 5.7 million barrels per day, more than 5% of global supply hence the spike in prices. After a volatile week Crude oil finished +6.1%.

There was mixed results in global stocks as US and Chinese markets moved lower whereas most European stocks moved higher. There was little movement as markets had anticipated the Fed’s decision to cut borrowing rates by 0.25%. Treasury yields ended the week lower with geopolitical risk increasing demand for the traditional safe-haven assets.

THIS WEEK IN 30 SECONDS...

PMI data is due for release today for the manufacturing and services sectors in the Euro area and the US. Closing off the week will be the release of the Fed’s preferred inflation measure as well as consumer sentiment numbers.

A ruling is expected, at some stage from the UK Supreme Court, on whether Boris Johnson’s prorogation of Parliament was lawful after evidence was heard over a number of days last week. The decision may see some movements in sterling but Brexit issues are unlikely to be any clearer.

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SPORT

As the 9th Rugby World Cup kicked off over the weekend in Japan the economic value of the tournament is estimated to be nearly €3.7bn. With the wide advantages not just to rugby but also to any host nation (estimations below), will Ireland declare their interest for the 2027 tournament? COYBIG.