A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from
Anshuman Daga
Asian shares edged up from their lowest levels in about one
month but trading was slow ahead of minutes of the last Federal
Reserve meeting and a reading on core inflation, with rising
interest rates still seen as a risk for markets.
In Europe, money markets show that investors are already
betting on a peak European Central Bank rate around 3.75% by
late summer, up from levels around 3.4% earlier this month.
Investors are unwinding earlier bets after a string of
hawkish comments from policymakers, forcing European shares to
retreat further from one-year highs.
ECB officials have highlighted their fears about stubborn
underlying inflation.
The central bank raised rates by 50 basis points this month
and pre-announced another increase of the same size for March 16
but it kept an open mind about future moves, with most
policymakers expecting another rate hike in May.
Geopolitical tensions heightened again as U.S. Secretary of
State Antony Blinken warned top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi of
consequences should China provide material support to Russia's
invasion of Ukraine, saying in an interview after the two met
that Washington was concerned Beijing was considering supplying
weapons to Moscow.
Meanwhile, in a week when India hosts the year's first G20
finance and central bank chiefs meeting, from Feb. 22-25, tough
global discussions over debt forgiveness for poor nations are
going to get even trickier.
China, the world's largest bilateral creditor, is under fire
for playing tough on terms.
Stand-out items on this week's economic calendar include the
Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, earnings reports
from big U.S. retailers, global flash PMIs, and inflation
readings from the euro zone and Japan.
Elsewhere, the race to buy Manchester United gathered steam
with Jim Ratcliffe's company INEOS confirming it had bid for the
club, while a source told Reuters that U.S. hedge fund Elliott
Investment Management was also prepared to finance a takeover.
Any sale of the Premier League giant would likely exceed the
biggest sports deal so far: the $5.2 billion including debt and
investments paid for Chelsea.
The Glazers began looking at options for record 20-time
English champions United, 17 years after they bought the Old
Trafford club for 790 million pounds ($951 million) as part of a
highly leveraged deal.
Underlying the weakness in property markets, average asking
prices for British residential property rose by just 14 pounds
in February from January, the smallest rise on record for a
month which normally sees a big seasonal increase, data from
property website Rightmove showed on Monday.
Key developments that could influence markets on Monday:
Economic data: Euro zone Feb consumer confidence
U.S. markets closed
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(Reporting by Anshuman Daga; Editing by Edmund Klamann)
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