Market Commentary: October marked highest consumer confidence data since 2007

European shares rose on Tuesday, reversing the previous session's dip as better-than-expected results from a number of blue-chips including pharma group Novartis and bank UBS helped lift sentiment.

Gains in Europe were spurred by the German DAX, up 1.9 percent, and peripheral euro zone markets, with Spain's IBEX up 2 percent and Italy's FTSE MIB 2.4 percent higher.

The French CAC and Britain's FTSE gained only 0.4 percent and 0.6 percent respectively, hit by steep falls in French pharmaceutical Sanofi and UK-listed Standard Chartered Bank after they reported results that missed expectations.

UBS was the top gainer, up 5.8 percent after the bank beat forecasts with a 32 percent rise in net profit from a year earlier. Swiss pharma Novartis and Dutch telecom KPN also rose after beating expectations.

Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered tumbled 8.8 percent after saying it will cut branches and sell more non-core assets as part of a plan to cut costs by $400 million next year.

Shares in Italy's Saipem were suspended following an 8.9 percent slump after the company posted a third-quarter net profit below market consensus and said full-year results would come in at the lower end of guidance. They closed 5.8 percent lower.

Japanese stocks fell yesterday as investors awaited the outcome of the Fed’s two-day policy meeting. The Nikkei closed down 0.4% at 15,329.91 points. Shares in Canon Inc slid 2.5% as profits fell due to weeker digital camera sales.  As Japans retail sales increased, Seven & I Holdings and Aeon Co ended the session higher, rising 0.1% and0.4% respectively.

U.S. stocks rose more than 1 percent yesterday, with the S&P 500 ending above its 50-day moving average as strong earnings eased concerns about the outlook for corporate America.

All 10 primary S&P 500 sectors were up with Energy stocks ending the day as the biggest gainers.

The month of October marked the highest consumer confidence data since 2007. The report overshadowed a separate read that showed new orders for capital goods by U.S. businesses fell the most in eight months in September.

The majority of U.S. companies reporting third-quarter results have beaten analysts' expectations so far, easing some worries about the impact of a stronger U.S. dollar and weak global demand.

On the other hand there have been some high-profile earnings disappointments. Twitter Inc fell 9.8 percent to $43.78 after it posted a slide in a closely watched measure of engagement, even as its user base grew in the third quarter.

In Europe about a quarter of companies listed on the STOXX Europe 600 .STOXX benchmark have reported results so far, with 66 percent beating profit forecasts.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 187.81 points, or 1.12 percent, to 17,005.75, the S&P 500 gained 23.42 points, or 1.19 percent, to 1,985.05 and the Nasdaq Composite added 78.36 points, or 1.75 percent, to 4,564.29.

Investors were awaiting clues on the outlook for the U.S. economy from the Federal Reserve as the central bank commenced a two-day policy meeting. It is likely to reinforce expectations it will wait a long while before rising interest rates, although the Fed is all but certain to announce the end of its massive bond-buying stimulus.

This article was issued by Calamatta Cuschieri, visit www.cc.com.mt for more information.

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