Weekly Market Update

Author : Laura Hochstetler
Date : July 7, 2018

Market Action

German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed to set up border holding camps for asylum seekers in a deal that could stave off a collapse of her government but puts her legacy of welcoming refugees and preserving open borders on the line. She now faces problems with her Social Democratic allies and accusations that she is undermining the Schengen free-travel zone.

After China’s currency fell this week its weakest point in almost a year, Yi Gang, the governor of the People’s Bank of China, said he was “closely monitoring” market fluctuations and pledged to keep the yuan’s exchange rate “generally stable”.

The US implemented a 25% tariff on $34 billion of Chinese imports, the first part of the $50 billion announced earlier this year. China responded immediately by placing tariffs on US shipments, of approximately the same dollar amount, on goods including soybeans and automobiles.

Andrés Manuel López Obrador, after winning last Sunday’s election in Mexico, is close to gaining a Congressional two-thirds majority needed to pass constitutional reforms repealing of most of the economic overhauls passed during the administration of President Enrique Peña Nieto.

Turkey’s annual inflation rate increased to 15.4% in June, a 14-year high, putting more pressure on the lira. The currency has fallen by almost a fifth against the dollar since the start of the year, which has pushed up consumer prices. Many want the central bank to moderate inflation through higher interest rates, but the bank has to contend with objections to lofty rates from the re-elected Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Please click here for this week’s update on market returns.

This Week from BlackSummit

Global Synchronized Growth? Credit Markets and Earnings Potential
John E. Charalambakis