1. G20 Concerns Restrain Forex Markets
The U.S. dollar recovered some of yesterday’s losses on Friday morning after dropping sharply on the back of Fed Chair Powell’s comments on interest rates. Specifically, USD/JPY retreated slightly at 113.45 JOY, the GBP/USD slid 0.05% to $1.2778, while EUR/USD tumbled 0.08% at 1.1383. Powell’s view that rates are just under neutral levels is a sign that the Federal Reserve intends to slow its pace of tightening next year, which in turn depreciates the dollar. Currency movements overall remained restrained by concerns about the upcoming G20 meeting. President Trump will sit down with President Xi later within the day. Any updates on the outcome of their meeting are expected to have a major impact on USD pairs.*
2. More Trouble For Thomas Cook. Where Is the Stock Headed?
More than 70% has been wiped off Thomas Cook’s valuation this year. The extent of Thomas Cook’s “disappointing” 2018 was laid bare on Thursday, with the travel giant swinging sharply into the red and racking up an annual pre-tax loss of £53m. TCG shares tumbled this past week after the company issued its second profit warning in two months on Tuesday. Revenue rose 6pc to £9.6bn in the year to Sept 30. But profit margins were hit as prices were slashed to entice those booking later this summer. TCG finished the day at a yearly low of 33.68GBP on Thursday while technicals show that TCG’s selloff will continue throughout December.**
3. Oil Prices Rise On Upcoming OPEC Cuts
Oil prices firmed on Friday on expectations that OPEC and Russia will agree on some form of production cuts next week. Specifically, International Brent crude oil futures (CL_BRENT) were at $60.07 per barrel at 8:00 GMT this morning, up 14 cents, or 0.3 percent from their last close while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (USOIL) crude futures traded flat at $51.46 per barrel.The producer group plus non-OPEC member Russia will gather on Dec. 6 and 7 in Vienna to discuss output policy. Before that, the world’s top three producers – the United States, Russia and Saudi Arabia – will be part of a meeting of the Group of 20 industrialized nations in Buenos Aires, Argentina, this weekend.***
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*Source: Forbes, Nov 30, 2018, 6:25 AM GMT
**Source: Telegraph, Nov 30, 2018, 4:16 AM GMT
***Source: CNBC, Nov 30, 2018, 3:03 AM ET
