The war in Ukraine has tended to increase uncertainty regarding inflation and growth prospects. When and with what consequences this war will end is pure speculation, but capital markets are expected to build a certain immunity to the headline risks in the coming weeks. The medium- to long-term consequences, on the other hand, could be significant. It is possible that we are at the beginning of a new bloc formation or a new Cold War. This would put a significant damper on globalization and further fuel higher structural inflation. 

US equities finished the first session of the week in the green, albeit well off the best levels of the day, trimming some of last week’s sharp drop. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.2% to 32,889, the S&P 500 Index added 0.3% to 3,982, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 0.6% to 11, 467. In Europe, equity markets also rose on Monday, with the Euro Stoxx 50 index registering a gain of 1.7%. Travel and leisure shares led gains in the Old Continent, rising more than 2%.  

Summary as at 28.02.2023 

  • Asian equity markets rose on Tuesday, taking cues from a positive lead on Wall Street as investors digested a raft of economic data across the region, headlined by Japanese and Australian retail sales data which rose more than expected in January. In Hong Kong, Chief Executive John Lee announced that the city-state will drop its mask mandate starting March 1. Shares in Australia, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and mainland China all advanced. 
  • European equity markets head for a positive open in tandem with US equity futures as the market braces for the final day of February. 
  • Oil prices moved in a small range on Tuesday as traders awaited more cues from Chinese and US business activity readings due this week, although fears of rising interest rates and slowing economic growth saw markers nursing steep losses. 
  • January preliminary durable goods orders fell 4.5% month-over-month in the US, versus the consensus estimate of a 4.0% decrease, and versus the prior month’s downwardly revised 5.1% jump.  
  • ECB Governing Council member Boris Vujcic said yesterday that the Bank must push on with monetary-policy tightening while price pressures endure. “As long as core persists at the levels we’re talking about and this is significantly higher than our rates are and significantly higher than where our target is, we should persevere,” Vujcic was reported as saying. 
  • Berkshire Hathaway Inc reported Q4 operating EPS of $3.06, below the consensus estimate of $3.54, with operating earnings of $6. billion, down 7.9% from a year ago. The company said it used about $2.6 billion to repurchase its shares. 
  • Zoom Video Communications Inc reported better-than-expected financial results and issued strong earnings guidance on Tuesday night, leading to a surge in the share price during extended trading. Q4 revenue increased 4% year-on-year to $1.12 billion, beating the consensus estimate of $1.1 billion. The company reported quarterly earnings of $1.22 per share, surpassing average analyst estimates of 80 cents per share. 
  • Occidental Petroleum Corp on Monday said it would sharply raise spending this year, including on its direct air capture carbon-reduction project, which has been delayed to 2025. The company posted Q4 profit below Wall Street estimates on lower energy prices and higher costs. It raised its quarterly dividend by 38% to 18 cents per share and disclosed a £3 billion share buyback program.