LONDON: World stock markets retreated Thursday and the dollar sank, with investors deflated by a lack of economic detail from Donald Trump at his first post-election press conference.
Traders had hoped the real estate tycoon would flesh out some of his campaign promises such as tax cuts and infrastructure spending, but he gave very little away Wednesday, fueling uncertainty about his aspiration to boost the US economy.
However, he did lash out at drugs companies for “getting away with murder” in offshoring production and overcharging, which weighed on the pharmaceuticals sector.
Investors did not seem impressed by Trump’s performance at his first news conference since winning the election, analysts at Moneycorp said in a note.
“What they had been hoping for was stuff about tax cuts, infrastructure spending and financial deregulation. What they got was gripes about US intelligence services, unsupportive newspapers, Mexican imports and the price of medicines. The whole thing smacked more of tariffs and protectionism than of stimulus,” the note said.
At the news conference, Trump attacked US intelligence agencies and the media as he denied explosive allegations about his ties to Russia, but admitted for the first time that Moscow had likely meddled in the US election.
“The FTSE is suffering in the aftermath of yesterday’s Trump speech, with pharmaceutical firms Hikma and Shire proving a drag after the president-elect promised lower US drug prices,” said Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG trading group.
“Fortunately, the weaker dollar has helped commodity prices push higher once more, putting Anglo American, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton at the top of the leader board.”
“Dealers were extremely discouraged by the lack of detail regarding the new administration’s economic plan, as the presser was more about extinguishing smoldering hot spots regarding conflict of interest and the Trump organization’s associations with Russia,” said Stephen Innes, senior trader at Oanda trading group.
The disappointment saw traders shift out of the dollar toward the haven yen currency, which in turn dragged on Tokyo’s Nikkei, which closed down 1.2 percent.
By mid-afternoon, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index — which has plowed on to ever new highs in the past weeks thanks on the back of a weak pound — moved back into slightly positive territory after a weak start to the day.
In the eurozone, on the other hand, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 index and the Paris CAC 40 were in the red, pulled down by the softer start on Wall Street.
Traders brushed off news that the German economy grew by around 0.5 percent in the final quarter of 2016 — data that suggested Europe’s top economy regained momentum after a summer dip.
German growth had slowed to 0.2 percent in the third quarter, according to the federal statistics office Destatis.
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New York — Dow: down 0.5 percent at 19,855.19 points
London — FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,293.17 points
Frankfurt — DAX 30: DOWN 0.8 percent at 11,555.22
Paris — CAC 40: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,873.15
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,292.93
Tokyo — Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.2 percent at 19,134.70 (close)
Shanghai — Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,119.29 (close)
Hong Kong — Hang Seng: DOWN 0.5 percent at 22,829.02 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0655 from $1.0640
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2269 from $1.2283
Dollar/yen: UP at 114.24 yen from 113.98 yen
Oil — West Texas Intermediate: UP $1.06 at $53.31 per barrel
Oil — Brent North Sea: UP $1.19 at $56.29
Traders had hoped the real estate tycoon would flesh out some of his campaign promises such as tax cuts and infrastructure spending, but he gave very little away Wednesday, fueling uncertainty about his aspiration to boost the US economy.
However, he did lash out at drugs companies for “getting away with murder” in offshoring production and overcharging, which weighed on the pharmaceuticals sector.
Investors did not seem impressed by Trump’s performance at his first news conference since winning the election, analysts at Moneycorp said in a note.
“What they had been hoping for was stuff about tax cuts, infrastructure spending and financial deregulation. What they got was gripes about US intelligence services, unsupportive newspapers, Mexican imports and the price of medicines. The whole thing smacked more of tariffs and protectionism than of stimulus,” the note said.
At the news conference, Trump attacked US intelligence agencies and the media as he denied explosive allegations about his ties to Russia, but admitted for the first time that Moscow had likely meddled in the US election.
“The FTSE is suffering in the aftermath of yesterday’s Trump speech, with pharmaceutical firms Hikma and Shire proving a drag after the president-elect promised lower US drug prices,” said Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG trading group.
“Fortunately, the weaker dollar has helped commodity prices push higher once more, putting Anglo American, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton at the top of the leader board.”
“Dealers were extremely discouraged by the lack of detail regarding the new administration’s economic plan, as the presser was more about extinguishing smoldering hot spots regarding conflict of interest and the Trump organization’s associations with Russia,” said Stephen Innes, senior trader at Oanda trading group.
The disappointment saw traders shift out of the dollar toward the haven yen currency, which in turn dragged on Tokyo’s Nikkei, which closed down 1.2 percent.
By mid-afternoon, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index — which has plowed on to ever new highs in the past weeks thanks on the back of a weak pound — moved back into slightly positive territory after a weak start to the day.
In the eurozone, on the other hand, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 index and the Paris CAC 40 were in the red, pulled down by the softer start on Wall Street.
Traders brushed off news that the German economy grew by around 0.5 percent in the final quarter of 2016 — data that suggested Europe’s top economy regained momentum after a summer dip.
German growth had slowed to 0.2 percent in the third quarter, according to the federal statistics office Destatis.
____
New York — Dow: down 0.5 percent at 19,855.19 points
London — FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,293.17 points
Frankfurt — DAX 30: DOWN 0.8 percent at 11,555.22
Paris — CAC 40: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,873.15
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,292.93
Tokyo — Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.2 percent at 19,134.70 (close)
Shanghai — Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,119.29 (close)
Hong Kong — Hang Seng: DOWN 0.5 percent at 22,829.02 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0655 from $1.0640
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2269 from $1.2283
Dollar/yen: UP at 114.24 yen from 113.98 yen
Oil — West Texas Intermediate: UP $1.06 at $53.31 per barrel
Oil — Brent North Sea: UP $1.19 at $56.29
