At the time of good resolutions for the new year, the Paris Bourse is moving towards a slightly higher opening for its first session of 2022. The trend could benefit from the good orientation of contracts futures on American indices. The activity promises to be symbolic once again due to the closure of many financial places on Monday, including the London Stock Exchange.
In Asia, Tokyo, Sydney and Chinese places are closed on Monday. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index lost 0.6% as the bell approached after losing 14.1% last year, one of the worst performances among the world’s major markets. Evergrande shares are suspended from listing pending the publication of a press release from the real estate developer, which failed to honor the payment of coupons linked to a bond in the amount of $ 255 million due last Thursday. The group has a 30-day grace period to honor this payment. The sub-index of the real estate sector lost almost 1%.
Less disruption to economic activity
At the time of the balance sheets and the outlook, investors want to display a certain optimism, if only on the face of it, when, if the Omicron variant is clearly more contagious than the previous strains, it is also deemed to be less dangerous, if the ‘we believe the data on hospitalizations. The risks associated with the pandemic are expected to decrease, especially as China is on the way to easing its monetary policy. Generally, ” our economists anticipate less disruption to economic activity and aim for above-trend global growth in the first quarter, particularly in Asia. Regarding the Fed’s monetary tightening, the peak of disruption for the markets is also close “, Summarize the strategists of JPMorgan based in Hong Kong in a note quoted by Bloomberg.
Inflation and central banks in the sights
Investors will keep an eye on the development of inflation and the response of central banks. Many strategists predict an increase in volatility in the face of these unknowns. The week which begins will be marked in particular by the first estimate of December inflation in the euro zone, as well as by the employment report for the same month in the United States.
In the meantime, the market will monitor the PMI Markit manufacturing activity indices in the euro zone and the United States on Monday, as well as construction spending across the Atlantic in November.
On the value side, new car registrations fell by 15.4% over one year in France in December.