The last few trading days were characterized in particular by the key interest rate decisions of the Federal Reserve (Fed) and the European Central Bank (ECB) as well as the ongoing reporting season on both sides of the Atlantic.
An agreement in the trade dispute between the world's two largest economies is also likely to have provided some relief.
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Trade dispute between USA and China eases - Washington and Beijing reach agreement
A further escalation of the tariff conflict between Washington and Beijing appears to have been averted for the time being. US President Donald Trump recently threatened additional tariffs of 100 percent on Chinese goods from the beginning of November.
After talks between Trump and Xi, for example, it was agreed that the Chinese side would not tighten its export restrictions on rare earths for one year. Trump announced that he would reduce the fentanyl tariffs on Chinese products by 10 percentage points.
US Federal Reserve lowers key interest rate - December rate cut remains questionable
As expected, the US Federal Reserve tightened the notorious interest rate screws on Wednesday evening and reduced the key interest rate by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75 to 4.00 percent.
However, there was no clear commitment from Powell regarding a further interest rate cut in December. This was „by no means a foregone conclusion, quite the opposite“, it was said. In the short term, inflation expectations are pointing upwards. At the same time, the labor market is not weakening. The resulting uncertainty speaks for a cautious approach, the report continued.
However, on December 1, the monetary watchdog announced that it intended to end the measures to reduce the balance sheet.
German GDP does not grow in the third quarter ECB pauses interest rates
The German economy did not grow in the third quarter of the year. Gross domestic product (GDP) stagnated at the level of the previous quarter. In spring, GDP had fallen by 0.2 percent.
The European colleagues did not provide any major surprises on Thursday afternoon.
As expected, the European Central Bank (ECB) left the so-called deposit rate at 2.0%. Following interest rate pauses in July and September, the ECB had previously lowered interest rates a total of eight times in a row.
Inflation in the eurozone declining - US price data in focus this afternoon
According to an initial estimate, eurozone inflation fell by an average of 2.1% in October compared to the same month last year, as reported by the EU statistics office Eurostat on Friday. A rate of 2.2 percent was expected in advance.
Last but not least, investors should keep an eye on US price data this afternoon. The core rate for personal consumption expenditures (13:30) is expected, which should provide important inflation signals.
Amazon shines with strong cloud business - Apple expects best Christmas business in the company's history
In the reporting season on the other side of the Atlantic, Amazon (ISIN: US0231351067) was able to shine with a strong cloud business. The increasing demand for computing capacity for artificial intelligence (AI) is likely to have provided a tailwind. Revenue rose by 13% to 180.2 billion dollars in the third quarter. Profit rose by around 39% to over 21 billion dollars.
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Apple (ISIN: US0378331005) is currently expecting the best Christmas business in the company's history to date. In the past quarter, the Group was able to increase its turnover year-on-year to 102.5 billion dollars despite the customs dispute with China.
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