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JamesIG

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  1. JamesIG
    Expected index adjustments 
    Please see the expected dividend adjustment figures for a number of our major indices for the week commencing 30 July 2018. If you have any queries or questions on this please let us know in the comments section below. For further information regarding dividend adjustments, and how they affect  your positions, please take a look at the video. 


    NB: Special Divs are highlighted in orange 
    Special Dividends
    Index Bloomberg Code Effective Date Summary Dividend Amount RUSSELL MC US 01/08/2018 Special Div 1.5 RUSSELL JBSS US 02/08/2018 Special Div 2 RUSSELL UFCS US 02/08/2018 Special Div 3 As you know, constituent stocks of an index will periodically pay dividends to shareholders. When they do, the overall value of the index is effected, causing it to drop by a certain amount. Each week, we receive the forecast for the number of points any index is due to drop by, and we publish this for you. As dividends are scheduled, public events, it is important to remember that leveraged index traders can neither profit nor lose from such price movements.How do dividend adjustments work? 
    This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.

  2. JamesIG
    European shares seen opening slightly higher Interest rates and details of asset purchases by the ECB remain unchanged after yesterdays meeting. No mention of protectionist policy or further details on the supposed resolution of aluminium and steel tariffs were given by Draghi. Prescription cannabis for medical use is now legal in the UK after a reclassification of the drug. Amazon smash forecasts of $2.54 EPS with a healthy $5.07 for their end of years. Sky broadcaster and broadband provider profits are soaring amidst the Comcast and 21st Century Fox bidding war. Copper is looking to gain this week for the first time in seven. After three days worth of gains oil slipped on a quieter trading day, however the black gold remains supported by Saudi transport disruption. Asian overnight: A somewhat steady, if indecisive session overnight saw moderate gains across the Japanese and Australian indices, while Chinese and Hong Kong markets drifted lower throughout the session. Asian markets are trading marginally lower this morning although the Australian All Ordinaries is up nearly 1%. Yesterday’s Facebook driven losses on the Nasdaq had a limited impact on tech shares in Asia, with Hong Kong the only market to see downside for their tech sector. On the data front, Japanese Tokyo core CPI rose to 0.8% (from 0.7%), in a welcome continuation of the rare rise seen last month.
     
    UK, US and Europe:  US Index Futures are staging a partial rebound this morning after yesterday's Nasdaq led decline following worse than expected results from Facebook.  The dollar has softened overnight and in turn we have seen some marginal gains in commodity prices. Looking ahead, a quiet day from Europe means the focus will be firmly fixed on the US GDP figure, which is expected to rise sharply to over 4%. Trump’s excitement at the ‘best financial numbers on the planet’ could possibly be another lead on the potential release, given his announcement about “looking forward to the jobs numbers” on the day of a massive NFP outperformance back in June.
    The corporate calendar remains busy, with Twitter earnings maintaining the focus on tech stocks today. Meanwhile, we also have the likes of Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Colgate, Merck, and American Airlines numbers to look out for.
    South Africa: The rand is slightly firmer against the majors. BHP Billiton is up 2.2% in Australia, suggestive of a positive start for local diversified miners. Tencent Holdings is down 0.75% in Asia, suggestive of a similar start for major holding company Naspers. Markets are expected to trade cautiously into this afternoons US GDP data release where consensus estimates predict an economic expansion of more than 4% q/q in the worlds largest economy. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – US GDP (Q2, first reading): growth forecast to be 2.1% QoQ. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    3pm – US Michigan confidence index (July, final): forecast to fall to 97.1 from 98.2. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Reckitt Benckiser saw an outperformance in its infant formula business, with a 7% rise in sales for that segment helping drive a 4% increase in like-for-like sales for the business as a whole over the second quarter. It was that bullish development in their infant formula business, particularly in China, which helped raise their full-year sales outlook. Pearson are on track to return the business to profitability this year, after a rise in demand in US and online helped deliver an outperformance for what is traditionally a quiet first half of the year. The second half of the year is usually where the company makes the bulk of its profits, and with first-half adjusted operating profit of £107m, this was well ahead of the £85m expected. BT Group saw a 1% rise in core earnings for the first quarter, thanks largely to cost savings, and strong business in its EE mobile unit. However, the firm also saw underlying revenue down 2%, which fell in line with market expectations. Rightmove saw pre-tax profit rise 12% in the six months to June, with revenue up 10% as their revenue per advertiser rose to £987, from £911. The number of agents using the platform remained largely flat despite housing market struggles, helping enable a 14% rise in their interim dividend, to 25p a share. Oando Plc  Interim results showed turnover increased by 11%, N297.3 billion compared to N267.0 billion (H1 2017). Gross Profit increased by 53%, N51.0 billion compared to N33.4 billion (H1 2017).  Royal Bafokeng Platinum anticipates a loss per share ("LPS") for the six months ended 30 June 2018, of between 13.5 cents and 10.5 cents (representing an improvement of between 10% and 30%), compared to a LPS of 15 cents for the previous corresponding period (the six months ended (30 June 2017). A headline loss per share (“HLPS”) of between 7.5 cents and 4.5 cents (representing an improvement of between 51% and 70.6%) is anticipated, compared to a HLPS of 15.3 cents for the previous corresponding period.  William Hill Upgraded to Hold at Peel Hunt
    Tekmar Group Rated New Buy at Berenberg
    NCC Upgraded to Buy at Berenberg
    Rosneft GDRs Upgraded to Buy at Goldman
    Amerisur Resources Cut to Sector Perform at RBC
    Inchcape Downgraded to Hold at HSBC
    SSE Downgraded to Hold at HSBC
    Ebro Foods Downgraded to Neutral at Haitong
     
    Featured Video
     
    Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  3. JamesIG
    New ESMA regulations coming into force for the EU region are set to standardise the way margin close out rules work for retail traders. On the IG trading platform the new margin close-out rules will come into effect from 1pm on Monday 30 July. Please find an overview of the new regulation and how this may effect your account. We've included a useful video and a worked example which may also help. 
    Please remember that these changes only affect retail clients of EU firms (that are subject to ESMA regulation), and do not apply to professional clients. Please add any query, question, or request for clarification in the comments box.
     
    What is the new ESMA margin close out rule?
    Put simply, for all ESMA regions we will need to include running losses for limited risk positions when looking at the equity calculation. Let's look at a worked example. 
    Say you have £1200 cash on your IG account.  You place a FTSE trade with a guaranteed stop and it requires a margin of £1000.  If the market moves against you £200's worth you would then start to eat into your margin. If the market continues to move against you by a further £500 (i.e. 50% of the margin required to open your trade) your position would be closed. This is because 50% of your margin was used up, and your equity value was therefore £500 (half of the margin).  The new ESMA rules require us to close the position.  You would be left with £500 in your account.  Please remember if the market gaps over this level then there is no guarantee to close your trade at this exact 50% level. There is a 'negative balance protection' rule which will be in place from July 28th, however this applies to the account as a whole. There are a couple of other important things to note
    We will not be implementing 24 hour or weekend close out rules for ESMA retail clients.  This change will be made on  July 30 from 1pm and will be apply on an account level (both existing and new positions). You can still use running profits to cover margin on new positions. Positions which have guaranteed stops will be margined at the higher value; max risk on the trade or the underlying market margin rate.   
    What does this mean for me?
    "I currently have a limited risk account" - If you currently have a limited risk account (i.e. every time you open a new trade you have to have a guaranteed stop attached to your trade) then you may be at risk of having your positions closed out automatically. This will be the first time that previously 'limited risk' accounts could get closed out automatically. 
    "I currently have a regular account" - If you currently have a regular account (i.e. you don't need to apply a guaranteed stop to every position, however it is an option if you wish) then you may be at risk of having your positions closed due to the above change in close out rules. When we calculate account equity today, we do not currently include running losses on positions with guaranteed stops. Under the new ESMA requirements, such positions will need to include running losses as part of the deposit ratio calculation. This means that your positions will be closed out when your cash, including all profit and loss, reaches 50% of your margin requirement.
     
    What is 'margin'? 
    In trading, margin is the funds required to open and maintain a leveraged position. You can read more about margin via our glossary definition of what margin means on the IG platform. You can also have a once over of the below video. 
     
    If you have any queries or questions regarding the new ESMA regulations please add a comment below.
    Once again, please remember that these changes only affect retail clients of EU firms (that are subject to ESMA regulation), and do not apply to professional clients. Please add any query, question, or request for clarification below.
    You may also find the following links useful.
    Compare our leverage offering Professional trading Best
    James
  4. JamesIG
    Asian equity markets mixed overnight on better than expected Trump trade talks, but poor US futures - notably Facebook results. Saudi Arabia is suspending the shipment of oil via the Red Sea following an attack from Yemeni Houthi. Gold steady as dollar eases after US and EU trade talks. Big results day for the European market with Shell, Diageo, Nestle, Daimler, and AB InBev set to give trading updates. The corporate focus remains crucial for US markets of late, with Amazon, Intel, McDonald’s, and Starbucks all reporting their latest figures today. Asian overnight: Overnight markets traded in somewhat indecisive fashion, with weakness in Chinese and Hong Kong indices coming amid strength in the Japanese Topix index. The Nikkei traded marginally lower, while the ASX 200 was flat on the session. This comes amid a session of mixed messages over in the US, with disappointing Facebook earnings driving a sharp decline in tech stocks. However, with the US and EU striking a truce and promise to bring down tariffs across the board, there is also a bullish theme to be seen.
    UK, US and Europe:  The move in the US is led by the Nasdaq following a poor reception to Facebook results. The ongoing trade war narrative remains in the market place as Donald Trump meets with EU leaders.
    European data has kicked off with the release of the German Gfk consumer climate number, which ticked moderately lower from 10.7 to 10.6. The eurozone focus will be maintained through the day, with today’s monetary policy decision from the ECB bringing heightened volatility and focus on the euro. We are unlikely to see any move from Draghi & co, yet this may not necessarily mean that we see the meeting pass without any fireworks. The US focus will be upon the impact of the EU-US trade deal, with many hoping this would become a blueprint for future dealings with China. On the calendar front, look out for core durable goods unemployment claims, and crucially the US trade balance data. 
    South Africa: Markets are expected to trade cautiously ahead of this afternoons ECB meeting and tomorrows Advance GDP data out of the US. Metal prices are trading flat to lower this morning. The rand is slightly weaker this morning although, trades near its best levels of the last few weeks. BHP Billiton is 0.3% lower in Australia, suggestive of a softer start for local diversified resource counters. Tencent Holdings is 2% lower in Asia, suggestive of a similar start for local holding company Naspers which has a 20% weighting in the Top40 Index.
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Tullow Oil reported a pre-tax profit of $55 million for the first half of the year, from a $348 million loss a year earlier. Revenue was up 15% to $905 million and net debt fell to $3.08 billion. The firm said that it did not yet believe a dividend was appropriate.  Vodafone reported a 4.9% fall in revenue for the first quarter, but annual organic adjusted earnings guidance was left unchanged at 1-5%. ITV said that first-half adjusted pre-tax profit fell 7% to £354 million, but revenue was 8% higher at £1.85 billion. Royal Bafokeng Platinum (SA) anticipates a loss per share ("LPS") for the six months ended 30 June 2018, of between 13.5 cents and 10.5 cents (representing an improvement of between 10% and 30%), compared to a LPS of 15 cents for the previous corresponding period (the six months ended 30 June 2017). A headline loss per share (“HLPS”) of between 7.5 cents and 4.5 cents (representing an improvement of between 51% and 70.6%) is anticipated, compared to a HLPS of 15.3 cents for the previous corresponding period.  Anglo American Plc (SA) a half year financial update showed earnings per share to have decreased by 6%. Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  5. JamesIG
    If you have any questions regarding the information below please add a comment. To get the best experience on Community please make sure you LOGIN. Notifications, private messages (if required), and tagging are only possible if you are logged in.
     
    In January, ESMA proposed a number of changes for leveraged retail traders within the EU region and kicked off a consultation period to open up the discussion. Over 14,600 people had their say via the #ReplyToESMA website, with an overwhelming majority opposing the regulatory changes.
    On the back of the proposal and trader feedback, ESMA drew up new regulations which are set to go live on August 1. To comply with these new regulations you may notice some changes on your IG account from the week commencing Monday July 23, 2018. Although not all the regulatory changes will affect all clients (for example some regulatory changes only affect specific instruments or account types), you can find a roadmap for these changes below.

    Wednesday, July 25
    Collateral - Linked collateral accounts were available for clients who had both a leveraged trading account (CFD or spread bet) and a stockbroking account. As of Wednesday, July 25 linked collateral accounts will no longer be an option. If you have insufficient funds at this time your leveraged trading account will be at risk of position closures.
     
    Thursday, July 26
    Credit limits for retail clients (formerly known as ‘Select Accounts’) - Some clients used to have ‘Select Accounts’, which allowed for certain types of credit limits or margin rates. On Thursday these account types will be switched to ‘closing only’ (i.e. the account type and agreed terms will remain, but you can only close your positions at your convenience and no new positions can be opened under this account type). Any new position would need to be opened under a newly set up, regular IG retail account. 
     
    Friday, July 27
    CFD options - At 15:00 (3pm) UK time all UK and European retail CFD clients will have any open options position closed basis the IG mid-price and all option marks will be set for ‘professional only’.
    IG has recently taken a business decision to no longer be supporting options trading for CFD accounts contracted through our European offices. While we appreciate that this decision will cause frustration to those who enjoy the product, regrettably, options have become a market that no longer fits with IG’s European offering. We are currently looking into alternative products to offer to meet a similar requirement and further information will be published when available.
    Closing at the mid-price means that IG will also not be charging any dealing costs to close your positions which remain open at 3pm UK time on 27th June. If you have access to a Spread Betting account (UK clients only), we will also be happy to “bed and breakfast” your trade across at the relevant, current prices, so please let us know if that is something you wish for us to do. This will need to be done over the phone as it would constitute a deal, so please give one of our trading services members a call at a time convenient, but before the above cut off date and time.
    If you have a Spread Betting account, only available to UK residents, then you can continue to speculate with options. If you are a UK resident but don’t have a spread betting account you can add one in My IG by clicking on My IG > Dashboard > Add an account.
     
    Saturday, July 28
    A number of changes will be applied over the weekend
    Margin Changes - Margin requirements to open and maintain leveraged positions was one of the more prominent aspects of the ESMA regulations. On the Saturday, July 28 new margin floors will be implemented across all ESMA retail accounts for all new positions. Existing positions will keep current margin rates. You can find more information regarding retail margin requirements here.

    Negative balance protection - All retail clients contracting to ESMA regulated entities will have negative balance protection applied to their account.

    Offsetting long and short positions - If a client is currently long and short a particular market then they will currently pay 10% of either leg. From July 28, clients will have to pay 100% of the ESMA margin on each position. This change will only apply on new positions, therefore if you are currently long and short the same market then you will continue to receive the concession.

    Rollovers - When Retail clients futures contracts rollover and a position is opened after the July 28, then the new position will be margined basis the ESMA minimums.

    Concessions - Some retail clients may receive concessions based on trade activity. ESMA regulations mean that retail clients will no longer receive any form or rebate or concession (funding concession/currency conversion concession).
     
    Monday, July 30
    Automatic COM (close out monitor if you have insufficient funds to cover the open trades in your account) - Retail clients will be subject to different COM ratio/available to deal calculations that will vary depending on what region you are in. You can read an overview of the ESMA margin rules from July 30th here.
     
    If you have any queries or questions regarding the new ESMA regulations please add a comment below. You may also find the following links useful.
    Compare our leverage offering
    Professional trading
    Once again, please remember that these changes only affect retail clients of EU firms (that are subject to ESMA regulation), and do not apply to professional clients. Please add any query, question, or request for clarification below.
    Best
    James 
     
  6. JamesIG
    The Turkish lira crashes yesterday as the central bank decided to keep rates unchanged despite soaring inflation. The UK housing market looks to remain stagnant as figures released by HMRC showed housing transactions slipped last month by as much as 3%. House sales were down nearly 6% YoY. Housing market data in the US set to release today, so keep an eye out at 12 midday and 3pm for mortgage apps and new home sales figures.  Banking shares continue to gain globally. Metro bank has said profits have quadrupled YoY in the first half, driven by continued strong growth in deposits, whilst UBS gave better than expected results yesterday. There are a number of prominent European banks set to release results this week, so keep an eye out for trade opportunities.  Oil gained yesterday as traders factored in an expected Chinese stimulus package, as well as concerns on the US/Iran tensions which could significantly disrupt oil supplies. For energy traders this would be a story to keep an eye on, along with weekly inventories at 3.30pm. Bitcoin jumps to its highest level since May on reports the SEC is set to approve a crypto ETF. Asian overnight: A mixed affair overnight saw gains in Japan and Hong Kong counterbalanced by losses throughout Chinese and Australian indices. Asian Markets are trading mostly firmer this morning although gains on the  Shanghai Composite are modest and the Australian All Ordinaries Index is slightly lower on the day. Considering the gains seen in US markets off the back of Alphabet earnings-fuelled tech stocks, the underlying momentum for global markets should be positive. The announcement from Chinese authorities that they would raise spending and bring some projects forward certainly provided a boost earlier in the week, yet the effects seems to be waning today. Data-wise, Australian CPI came in as expected, remaining at 0.4%.
    UK, US and Europe: US Index Futures are trading lower this morning to partially offset gains on major US Indices last night. Looking ahead, we look set for a somewhat quiet economic calendar, with German business climate representing the only event of note through the European session. The US session will likely focus on the latest US crude inventories numbers, while new home sales could also figure for some traders. Instead we see a significant impact from earnings, with Facebook, GM, Ford, Boeing, and Qualcomm ensuring that the corporate influence remains elevated.
    South Africa: Asian Markets trading mostly firmer this morning leads to the suggestion that the South Africa Top 40 Index is set to have a relatively flat open today, in what is a relatively quite day of economic news flow. Base metal prices have continued to rebound on optimism that the Chinese government will pursue stimulus measure to help offset the trade war risks to the market place. Precious metal prices are flat on the day. BHP Billiton is up over 2% on the Australian All Ordinaries, suggestive of a positive start for local diversified resource counters, although a firmer rand could temper these gains somewhat. Local banking and retail counters should find the strengthening domestic currency a partial catalyst for gains this morning. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    9am – German IFO index (July): business climate index to rise to 102.2 from 101.8. Market to watch: EUR crosses
    3pm – US new home sales (June): forecast to fall 2.8% MoM from a 6.7% rise. Market to watch: USD crosses
    3.30pm – US EIA crude inventories (w/e 20 July): stockpiles forecast to fall by 2.7 million barrels, from a 5.8 million increase a week earlier. Markets to watch: Brent, WTI
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Tullow Oil reported a pre-tax profit of $55 million for the first half of the year, from a $348 million loss a year earlier. Revenue was up 15% to $905 million and net debt fell to $3.08 billion. The firm said that it did not yet believe a dividend was appropriate.  Vodafone reported a 4.9% fall in revenue for the first quarter, but annual organic adjusted earnings guidance was left unchanged at 1-5%.  ITV said that first-half adjusted pre-tax profit fell 7% to £354 million, but revenue was 8% higher at £1.85 billion.   AECI Ltd Interim results showed headline earnings per share to have increased by 19% from the prior year's comparative interim period.  Applus Upgraded to Overweight at JPMorgan
    UBS Upgraded to Buy at SocGen
    B&M European Upgraded to Buy at Citi
    Kingfisher Upgraded to Neutral at Citi
    boohoo Downgraded to Neutral at Citi
    BT Downgraded to Sector Perform at RBC
    Peugeot Upgraded to Hold at DZ Bank
    Ryanair Downgraded to Reduce at AlphaValue
    Featured Video from IGTV
      Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  7. JamesIG
    Asian market gain whilst Chinese shares hit a 1 month high on hopes of a government stimulus package.  Hedge funds bet on higher government bond yields extending the USD gains, and prompting a gold sell off. Oversupply worries continue with oil causing a drop in prices.  Despite Google's Alphabet multibillion dollar fine, shares jump on results to a record breaking all time high. Crypto markets currently up but generally trading in a range.  Asian overnight: A positive session overnight saw gains across Japanese, Chinese, Hong Kong and Australian indices. Government bonds added to a sense of stability, with yesterday’s BoJ-fuelled volatility easing to give way to a move stable session. However, that Japanese theme continued on the data-front, with a weak manufacturing PMI (51.6 from 53.0) and BoJ core CPI (0.4% from 0.5%) adding to the difficulty for Japanese central bankers. It is clear that despite a whole raft of loose monetary policies, strong growth and high inflation remains elusive. 
    UK, US and Europe: The PMI theme looks set to continue into the European session, with a whole raft of eurozone PMI surveys due out throughout the morning. Particular attention is likely to be paid to the manufacturing sector (particularly German) amid the trade war with the US. Once again, PMI surveys will be key in the US session, with both manufacturing and services PMI surveys providing the main economic releases of the day.
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    8am – 9am – French, German, eurozone PMIs (July, flash): eurozone services PMI to fall to 53.7 from 55.2, and mfg PMI to rise to 55 from 54.9. Markets to watch: eurozone indices, EUR crosses
    2.45pm – US mfg & services PMI (July, flash): mfg expected to rise to 55.5 from 55.4, and services to fall to 56.3 from 56.5. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Hammerson said that full-year profits had fallen 81% to £55.7 million, although adjusted profit was up 0.5% to £120 million. Net rental income was down 3% to £178.5 million. The firm plans to sell £1.1 billion of property by the end of 2019.  PZ Cussons said that pre-tax profit slipped 23% to £66.6 million, while the annual dividend was left unchanged at 8.28p per share. Tough conditions in Nigeria hurt performance. Fevertree said that it expects full-year results to be ‘comfortably ahead’ of forecasts, as earnings rose 35% to £34 million for the first half. Revenue was up 45% at £104.2 million.  Featured Video from IGTV
      Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  8. JamesIG
    Fear of an increase in protectionism from the United States causes Asian equity markets to dip. Profit warnings rise 29% quarter on quarter to 58 FTSE listed companies. Retail sector leads the way, and its expected the earnings shall continue due to uncertainty in the future. Brexit secretary Raab says that the ‘no deal’ option is still on the table. GBP opened marginally down, but came back and has now gained from the Friday close. G20 central bank leaders have warned that global economic growth risks have increased on the back of geopolitical tensions and trade war fears. Oil falls on the back of concerns on reduced fuel demand and a knock on to manufacturing.  Thursdays ECB meeting is likely to be the primary event in the spotlight this week, however even then it’s likely to be a low key release. Current data suggests that things are performing as expected, so at best we’re likely to see Draghi express his satisfaction at his staffs predictions.  
    Asian overnight: Market jitters have continued into this week, with a strong selloff in the Nikkei 225 highlighting the strengthening Yen coming thanks to its role as a haven. The session was largely mixed, with gains in China and Hong Kong offsetting some of the losses from the Japanese and Australian regions. The weekend’s G20 meeting of finance ministers and central governors saw continued worries over the impact of current trade tensions on the global growth picture. 
    UK, US and Europe: Looking ahead, a somewhat quiet start to the week on the economic calendar sees eyes turn to eurozone concerns, with the Bundesbank monthly report and consumer confidence from the eurozone. The US markets will be looking towards US existing home sales figure, following on last week’s disappointing building permits and housing starts figures. The earnings season ramps up, with today’s earnings from Alphabet representing the first heavy hitter to keep an eye out for.
    South Africa: Global markets are trading mixed this morning, with US futures marginally lower, Australia and Japanese Indices trading firmly lower, while China and Hong Kong indices trade positive on the day. The Jse Top 40 Index is expected to trade marginally lower on open as it tempers strong gains from the end of last week. Miners in Australia are trading lower this morning with BHP Billiton down 1.4%, expectant of a similar start for locally listed resource counters today. Tencent Holdings is down 1.75% on the Hang Seng, suggestive of a similarly weak start for major holding company Naspers, which has a 20% weighting on the Top 40 Index. Today's economic calendar is relatively empty although markets will find guidance from earnings reports. South African banks are expected to release earnings updates in the week. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – US Chicago Fed nat’l activity index (June): forecast to rise to 0.4 from -0.15. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    3pm – eurozone consumer confidence (July, flash): forecast to fall to -2.3 from -0.5. Market to watch: EUR crosses
    3pm – US existing home sales (June): expected to rise 1.5% MoM from -0.4%. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    The BBC, ITV and Channel 4 are looking to join forces to provide a shared streaming service with all content in one place. This comes as Ofcom recently reported a decline in people watching traditional broadcasts, as well as a decline in spending on original content, over on demand paid services such as Netflix. Ryanair said that net profit fell to €319 million for Q1, although revenue was up 9% to €2.08 billion. Net margins dropped 6 percentage points to 15%. Lower fares, the lack of an Easter half, and higher oil and pilot costs all hit performance. Full-year guidance was left unchanged. BHP Billiton said that it intended to defend a claim against the group in Australia relating to the Samarco dam failure.  Hammerson has exchanged contracts for the sale of two retail parks for a total consideration of £164 million. The total sale price is at a 10% discount to the 2017 book value.  Anglo American Platinum (SA) Interim results showed headline earnings per share of 1282c, a significant increase from the 285c achieved in the comparable interim period last year. Harmony Gold (SA) has announced that it has exceeded annual FY18 production. Featured Video from IGTV
      Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  9. JamesIG
    Expected index adjustments 
    Please see the expected dividend adjustment figures for a number of our major indices for the week commencing 23rd July 2018. If you have any queries or questions on this please let us know in the comments section below. For further information regarding dividend adjustments, and how they affect  your positions, please take a look at the video. 


    NB: Special Divs are highlighted in orange 
    Special Dividends
    Index
    Bloomberg Code
    Effective Date
    Summary
    Dividend Amount
    HSI
    151 HK
    27/07/2018
    Special Div
    1.25
    STI
    KEP SP
    25/07/2018
    Special Div
    5
    SIMSCI
    KEP SP
    25/07/2018
    Special Div
    5
    How do dividend adjustments work? 
    As you know, constituent stocks of an index will periodically pay dividends to shareholders. When they do, the overall value of the index is effected, causing it to drop by a certain amount. Each week, we receive the forecast for the number of points any index is due to drop by, and we publish this for you. As dividends are scheduled, public events, it is important to remember that leveraged index traders can neither profit nor lose from such price movements.
    This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  10. JamesIG
    Asian equity markets are mixed, however some pushed higher overnight over a volatile trading session as the Chinese yuan bounced off a one year low. Trump showed displeasure towards the Fed's hikes, criticising policy and highlighting concerns on the potential impact of rising interest rates on the US economy causing the Dollar to sag. The Comcast / Disney bidding war for 21st Century Fox ended yesterday with the former pulling out of the race. Comcast still plan on pursuing Sky. 70% of Royal Mail shareholders opposed a pay package deal for their new incoming CEO. Airbus and Boeing have seen combined orders of nearly 1000 aircraft as this years Farnborough Air Show. This week has shown strength in the aviation industry with the UK government also unveiling plans for its 6th gen fighter jet, the ‘Tempest’. A new test network has been launched for Raiden, an Ethereum payments channel project introduced as a potential solution for the cryptocurrencies scalability issues. Have your say on which new cryptocurrency IG offer in our community poll. Asian overnight: Markets in Hong Kong struck a ten-month low yesterday, as Asian shares continued to suffer thanks to concerns about global trade wars. Australia was the sole point of light, rising 0.3%, with only materials stocks lower. China’s currency continued to weaken as well, crossing the Rmb6.8 mark against the dollar for the first time in a year. Markets are speculating that the Peoples Bank of China (PBOC)  will look to intervene in currency markets in lieu of the Yuan's recent decline.
    The yuan against the dollar, down to 6.8211 after sliding as much as 0.7 percent, is currently at its weakest level in a year.  It is now trading above the 6.7 mark, which historically has proved to be a strong support level for the yuan.
    UK, US and Europe: UK monthly retail figures disappointed yesterday forcing GBP lower and the chance of an August rate hike continuing to slide. High street retail is facing serious problems at the moment with Poundworld closing the last 190 of its stores as early as August 10th, and Goucho Groups ‘Cau’ chain set to go as the group heads into administration. Online competition, high rents, and a shifting discretionary consumer spending habit are the primary factors as Brexit and potential rising interest rates (and therefore larger mortgage repayments) weigh on many spenders minds. Premium ‘restaurant style’ deals at supermarkets, which really came into their own after the 2008 debacle, continue to be a cost efficient, easy alternative for many, whilst large online retailers such as Amazon (which saw its market cap nudge past $900bn a couple of days back) continue to thrive.
    The International Monetary Fund warns that a "no deal" Brexit would also be economically harmful to Eurozone countries, not just the UK. All goods and services would have to undergo stricter checks by the EU at its borders, complicating the systems currently in place. Estimates say that a "no deal" Brexit would cost the EU 1.5% of its GDP, or 250 billion euros.
    Looking forwards, the losses seen in the Asian market are expected to continue in Europe, with small drops for indices expected. Canadian CPI is the sole macro point of interest, while on the earnings front General Electric and Schlumberger report figures. The US dollar will also be in focus after President Trump commented that further rate increases could derail the economic boom in the US.
    South Africa: The rand slid even further than its emerging market currency peers yesterday after the South African Reserve Bank lowered its forecast for economic growth in 2018 to 1.2% from 1.7% previously. The rand has however posted a modest recovery this morning, although the longer term trend appears to remain that of weakening. Precious metal prices remain subdued , although palladium looks to have bucked the trend posting a near 2% gain. Crude prices are slightly firmer this morning. BHP Billiton is 2% lower in Asia this morning suggestive of a softer start for local diversified miners. Tencent is flat on the day, suggestive of a flat start for major holding company Naspers, which accounts for around a 20% weighting in the JSE Top40 index. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – Canada CPI (June): forecast to be 2.5% YoY from 2.2%, and 0.3% MoM from 0.1%. Core CPI to be 1.5% from 1.3% YoY. Markets to watch: CAD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Beazley reported pre-tax profit of $57.5 million for the first half, down from $158.7 million a year earlier. Gross premiums were up 25% to $1.32 billion. Homeserve said that growth prospects for FY 2019 are good, thanks to in-line performance for the 1 April to 19 July period.   Unilever has commenced the second half of its €6 billion share buyback, which is expected to finish prior to the year-end.  Corem Property Upgraded to Buy at Kepler Cheuvreux
    NP3 Fastigheter Raised to Buy at Kepler Cheuvreux
    Recordati Upgraded to Buy at Goldman
    Orion Upgraded to Hold at Jefferies
    Deoleo Downgraded to Underperform at BBVA
    EON Cut to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley
    Kone Downgraded to Hold at DNB Markets
    Outokumpu Downgraded to Hold at SEB Equities
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  11. JamesIG
    Trade war worries offset the gains seen in Wall Street with the Asian equity market struggling overnight. The trillion dollar valuation race between Apple and Amazon continues with Amazon tipping the $900bn valuation yesterday. GBP continues to take a beating against major world currencies as CPI data yesterday remained unchanged, reducing the likelihood of a rate hike in August. US banking shares continue to do good in earning season as Morgan Stanley profit jump. Oil prices remain volatile but fall amid record U.S. output and stockpiling continues to build. Have your say on which new cryptocurrency IG offer in our community poll. Asian overnight: Asian markets traded largely lower, as a breakdown in talks between the US and China highlighted the potential longevity of this recent trade war. However, despite the lack of any developments in trade negotiations, markets have largely taken the news in their stride, with losses proving relatively minimal. The Australian ASX 200 index was the one gainer overnight, despite a simultaneous rise in the AUD thanks to a batch of jobs data. A sharp rise in the employment change figure saw it rise to the highest level of 2018 thus far.
    UK, US and Europe: Global equity markets are trading mostly lower this morning although losses are marginal. While there appears to be no immediate and new economic catalysts to drive market movements this morning, US earnings remain a primary driver of equity markets right now. The dollar is slightly firmer and commodity prices modestly weaker this morning.
    Looking ahead, yet another important UK economic reading comes out in the form of the retail sales figure. With underwhelming jobs and inflation data, the expectations of an August rate rise are gradually easing, driving the pound lower. With the retail sales number expected to tumble from 1.3% to 0.1%, we could see yet another warning sign for the BoE today. In the US session, keep an eye out for the Philly Fed manufacturing survey, alongside the latest unemployment claims figure.
    South Africa: BHP Billiton is trading flat in Australia suggestive of a similar start for the South African listing of the company. Tencent Holdings is trading 0.6% lower in Asia, suggestive of a soft start for major holding company Naspers. A weak trading statement is expectant of a soft open for Woolworths, following on from a negative reaction yesterday to Shoprites trading update. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    9.30am – UK retail sales (June): forecast to rise 2.4% YoY from 3.9% and 0.4% from 1.3% MoM. Markets to watch: GBP crosses
    1.30pm – US initial jobless claims (w/e 14 July), Philadelphia Fed mfg index (July): claims to rise to 217K from 214K, while the Philadelphia Fed index rises to 21.5 from 19.9. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    AO World said that Q1 revenue rose 8%, reflecting a strong start to the year in April and May, although demand was weaker in June. It remains on track to hit full-year expectations.   Unilever sales rose 1.9% in Q2, below the forecast 2.2%. A Brazilian transport strike and weak performance hit pricing.  Babcock expects low single digit underlying growth for the full year, versus a previous forecast of low mid-single digit growth. This was due to a slowdown in defence and marine work.  Sports Direct said that full-year core earnings rose 12.2% to £306.1 million, ahead of forecasts of £296 million. Core earnings are expected to rise 5-15% in the next financial year.   Buffet has won more power for share buy backs for Berkshire Hathaway if he feels the stock is undervalued. BRK gains 5.27% on the news. Lloyd’s loses market share in the uk mortgage space last year to RBS and HSBC. Although companies usually want to remain dominant in all forms of market share, reducing exposure, and therefore risk, to this particular market going into rising interest rates and Brexit may not be the worst thing. Adler Modemaerkte Upgraded to Buy at Oddo
    Salzgitter Upgraded to Buy at Goldman
    Ericsson Upgraded to Reduce at AlphaValue
    HelloFresh Upgraded to Buy at Bankhaus Lampe
    Alstria Office Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan
    BioMerieux Downgraded to Hold at HSBC
    Hypoport Downgraded to Hold at Berenberg
    Continental Downgraded to Hold at Bankhaus Lampe
    Featured Video from IGTV
      Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  12. JamesIG
    Oil prices dropped after an industry group reported that U.S. crude inventories rose last week, defying analyst expectations for a significant reduction. Wage growth in Britain is slowing according to new data out yesterday, casting a shadow on the likelihood of a BoE rate hike in August. All eyes should be on UK CPI data later today. Feds Powell said the “best way forward”, despite an impending trade war, was to continue to gradually increase rates. IBM have backed a ‘stable coin’ supposedly pegged to the USD and running on the Stellar blockchain network. You can have your say on which new cryptocurrency IG offer in our community poll. Asian overnight: A mixed bag for Asian markets has seen losses throughout Chinese and Hong Kong indices, while Japanese and Australian markets enjoyed a more positive session. Japanese stocks in particular enjoyed a boost from a weakening yen, with USDJPY reaching a five-month high.
    UK, US and Europe: Last nights positive speech on the US economy by Federal Chair Person Jerome Powell, combined with some better than expected results from the financial sector to help stage a rebound in US equity markets.
    European concerns turn to the UK once more, with the latest inflation data due out this morning. Coming off the back of a somewhat underwhelming UK jobs report yesterday, the market expectations for a strong rise in CPI could be a key determinant of BoE sentiment ahead of their August meeting. Also look out for the eurozone CPI reading, although this is a final revision. In the US, building permits and housing starts push the agenda onto the housing market, yet with Jerome Powell set to give his second monetary policy testimony in as many days, there is a chance he will grab the headlines. With crude price showing significant volatility over the past week, traders should watch for the US crude inventories figure, following the substantial drawdown in stocks announced last week.
    South Africa:  The positive sentiment is echoing into US Futures this morning and expected to translate into our local Index on open as well. The dollar has strengthened to weigh on precious metal prices. The rand has also weakened against the greenback. BHP Billiton is trading 3.29% higher following an upbeat FY18 operational update this morning, with gains expected to be replicated on the company's JSE listing. Tencent Holdings is up 0.3% in Asia, suggestive of a marginally firmer start for major holding company Naspers. Miners of precious metals are expected to underperform our market today on account of the softer pricing of the underlying commodity. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    9.30am – UK CPI (June): YoY inflation to rise 2.5% YoY from 2.4%, and core CPI to be 2.3% from 2.1% YoY. MoM CPI to be 0.4%, in line with May. Markets to watch: GBP crosses
    10am – eurozone CPI (June): final YoY figure to be 2% from 1.9%, and 0.1% MoM from 0.5%. Markets to watch: EUR crosses
    1.30pm – US housing starts & building permits (June): starts to be down 4% MoM from a 5% rise, and permits to be up 0.7% MoM from a 4.6% fall. Markets to watch: USD crosses
    3.30pm – US EIA inventories (w/e 13 July): stockpiles forecast to fall by 1.9 million barrels, from a 12.6 million decrease a week earlier. Markets to watch: Brent, WTI
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    GVC said that net gaming revenues had risen 8% on a constant currency basis, for the first half of the year. Online business grew 20% over the same period. The World Cup and warm weather boosted performance.  Premier Foods said that sales rose 1.7% in the 13 weeks to 30 June, with good performances from the Mr Kipling and Batchelors brands.  easyJet expects headline pre-tax profit to be £550-590 million for the year to the end of September, up from previous forecasts of £530-580 million. Revenue rose 14% to £1.6 billion for the third quarter. Full-year headline costs per seat, excluding fuel, are expected to be 3% higher, from a previous 2% forecast rise, due to higher levels of industrial action.  Aker BP Upgraded to Buy at Norne Securities
    Ascential Upgraded to Buy at Goldman
    Brenntag Upgraded to Buy at Commerzbank
    Proximus Upgraded to Hold at Jefferies
    Bonava Downgraded to Reduce at Kepler Cheuvreux
    De’ Longhi Cut to Hold at Kepler Cheuvreux
    Fresnillo Cut to Sector Perform at Scotiabank
    Schibsted Downgraded to Hold at SEB Equities
    Featured Video from IGTV
     
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  13. JamesIG
    A sharp decline in oil prices has caused a lower Asian equity market session as energy sector is hit. Netflix share tumble 14% late last night in after hours trading on poor quarterly results, helping to pull down the S&P futures. The IMF has warned that tariffs imposed by the White House could initiate a $440bn knock to global growth and coined it the “greatest near term threat to global growth". Yesterday BoA beat earning expectations, Deutsche Bank share jumped in surprise profits forecast, and BlackRock profits up as well. Could this be a barometer for other banks earnings and a possible trade idea over earning season? Global regulators have started to lay the foundations to start monitoring crypto assets. BlackRock, the largest asset manager in the world with $6.3 trillion in AUM, also announced a plan to build a crypto unit. Crypto markets rose sharply on the news. Asian overnight: Asian markets largely traded in the red in the wake of a sharp deterioration in energy prices, with Japanese indices the only positive movers as they play catch up in the wake of yesterday’s bank holiday. Data wise, we saw the release of a weaker than expected inflation print from New Zealand, falling to 0.4% from 0.5%. Meanwhile, RBA minutes pointed towards a continued expectation that the next move will be a rate rise, although this remains some way off yet.
    UK, US and Europe: US corporate earnings have taken the mantle in terms of being at the forefront of driving short term market sentiment. Yesterday a softer results release from Netflix saw the tech sector weaker and in turn the Nasdaq leading declines amongst the major US indices. Oil prices have come under enormous pressure overnight as suggestions that the US may waiver some sanctions on Iran oil. Looking ahead, a whole host of employment related data points from the UK brings the pound into focus. The dominant figure to look out of comes in the form of the average earnings number, with BoE’s Cunliffe specifically singling out the possible undershooting of wages as a reason to hold off on an August rate hike. Also keep an eye out for the US industrial production figure and an appearance from Fed governor Powell who is due to testify on monetary policy before the Senate Banking Committee.
    South Africa:  The dollar has lost a bit of strength and in turn the rand has gained marginally this morning. BHP Billiton is down 1.69% in Australia suggestive of a softer start for diversified resources. Tencent Holdings is 1.3% lower in Asia suggestive of a similar start for major holding company Naspers. 
    Earning season look ahead: Earning season continues with Royal Mail and TalkTalk putting out quarterlies today, along with Johnson and Johnson, Progressive, and Fidelity. Don't forget Morgan Stanley, American Express, Hochschild Mining, RPC Group and Severn Trent look to publish on Wednesday, and there may be some trade potential there give the results from banks yesterday.
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)
    9.30am – UK employment data: May unemployment rate to rise to 4.3% from 4.2%, June claimant count to be 11K from -7.7K, and May average earnings to rise 2.7% from 2.5% (including bonus). Markets to watch: GBP crosses.
     
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Rio Tinto produced 88.5 million tonnes of iron ore in the second quarter, representing a 14% rise compared with the same quarter in 2017. Improved weather and productivity throughout its Pilbara iron ore operations in Western Australia were most notable amongst reasons for this shift. 2018 shipments are expected to be towards to top end of its 330-340 million tonnes guidance. Royal Mail traded in line with expectations, with a decline in addressed letter business (down 7%) and marketing mail over the three months to June 24 vs the same time last year. CashBuild Revenue for the fourth quarter for the Cashbuild Group was up 4% on the fourth quarter of the prior financial year, with the 42 new stores opened or acquired since 1 July 2016 contributing 5% of the increase, whilst the 276 existing stores decreased by 1%. The growth for the fourth quarter together with the growth of the previous quarters, equates to an increase in revenue for the Cashbuild Group of 5% for the financial year, with new stores contributing 5% of the increase and existing stores remaining at similar levels. Asos Upgraded to Buy at Goldman
    Morgan Advanced Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan
    Deutsche Bank Upgraded to Hold at Commerzbank
    Michelin Upgraded to Buy at HSBC
    Investec maintain buy rating on Naspers (SA) with a target price of 440000c 
    Investec maintain buy rating on Tencent with a target price of HK$530
    Adidas Downgraded to Market Perform at Wells Fargo
    Brunello Cucinelli Downgraded to Neutral at Goldman
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Dick Bove, veteran banks analyst and chief strategist at Hilton Capital Management, tells IGTV that Citigroup is most at risk from the US-Sino trade tensions. Bank of America (BoA) is his top pick in the sector, praising CEO Bryan Moynihan as ‘an expert CEO’. Bove says he can see the stock rising to $60. Meanwhile, he says JPMorgan’s numbers were ‘superb’ while Wells Fargo was ‘very disappointing.’ However if we enter into a recession, he says ‘all bets are off’.
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  14. JamesIG
    Asian shares down. China sees GDP growth data for Q2 soften which fuels fears as trade war row concerns build. Trump and Putin will sit down today for their first ever summit. Remarks from the pair could boost defence stocks. May's Brexit brings another MP resignation as the trade bill fight looms over the government. The UK's Rightmove house price index was published this morning and shows continued stalling and devaluation in London’s housing market. This could be seen as a barometer for wider inflation and brexit fears.  Oil prices remain volatile with prices easing on supply hike fears.  Dollar fails to gain momentum which supports gold prices. Earning season really kicking off with Royal Mail, Netflix, BoA, Unilever, Johnson and Johnson, and General Electric all amongst those publishing. Check out the ‘Earning Season weekly look ahead’ below for more info. Asian overnight: While Japan's Nikkei Index is closed on account of a banking holiday, most of the other Asian equity markets are trading lower this morning. A slow start to the week has seen losses across Chinese, Hong Kong and Australian markets. A weaker Chinese GDP reading saw the lowest level of growth since 2016 (6.7%), down on the previous 6.8%, however inline with expectations. We also saw a slowdown in fixed asset investment and industrial production, while retail sales provided the one positive reading. Trade war concerns are likely to continue into this new week, with Trump declaring that the EU, like China and Russia, is a foe of the US. Analysts from UBS speculate that a full blown trade war could knock off up to 20% from the S&P,  25% from European markets, and up to 24% off Asian equity markets.
    UK, US and Europe: Looking ahead, watch out for the eurozone trade balance data, while US retail sales, empire state manufacturing survey, and the business inventories figures provide the interest for the afternoon session. It's also worth noting that the UK's CPI figures released on Wednesday are expected to rise, backing up sentiment from some within the BoE’s MPC that interest rates should rise. Keep an eye out for GBP crosses and a bullish signal on any news which would support this claim.
    South Africa: While US Index Futures are modestly up, the Jse Top40 Index is expected to open modestly lower today following Asian markets. Precious metal prices trade slightly firmer this morning although still at depressed levels. Base metal prices are under pressure, as are oil prices today. The rand has managed to strengthen marginally against the majors over the weekend. BHP Billiton is down 0.75% in Australia, which along with softer base metal prices and a stronger ZAR is suggestive of a softer start for locally listed diversified resource counters. Tencent Holdings is up 0.15% on the Hang Seng. 
    Earning Season weekly look ahead: Earning season will really kick off this week with Bank of America, the worlds largest asset manager Blackrock, and streaming giant Netflix reporting figures today, along with the UK’s WH Ireland. Royal Mail and TalkTalk put out quarterlies tomorrow, along with Johnson and Johnson, Progressive, and Fidelity. Morgan Stanley, America Express, Hochschild Mining, RPC Group and Severn Trent look to publish on Wednesday. The well knock consumer goods company Unilever are up on Thursday, along with Big Yellow Group, Bank of New York Mellon, and Philip Morris International. General Electric, Baker Hughes, and Schlumberg will end an exhausting week on Friday. Told you it was a big one...
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – US retail sales (June), Empire state mfg index (July): sales expected to rise 0.6% MoM from 0.8% and Empire state index to fall to 22.75 from 25. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Google could be hit by an $11bn fine tomorrow over allegations it’s forced it’s mobile Android users to illegally favour their own apps, for example the Chrome web browser, over others. This $11bn fine could be up to 10% of Alphabets global turnover. TP Group expects to deliver full-year results in line with expectations after making a good start to 2018. It has closed a number of contracts since January, including £12.5 million of UK contracts for submarine equipment.  Indivior has won a temporary injunction on a generic opioid addiction treatment.  Meggitt has won a $21 million five-year contract to supply equipment for US Black Hawk helicopters.  ZTE stock surges as US supplier sees their ban lifted, however the outlook still looks uncertain.  MTN Dubai Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of MTN Group, has entered into an agreement in which it has sold 100% of MTN Cyprus to Monaco Telecom S.A. (“Monaco Telecom”) as part of an ongoing review of its portfolio. The net sale proceeds of €260 million (approximately R4,1 billion) will be paid upfront in cash. The transaction values MTN Cyprus at approximately 8x reported 2017 EBITDA. Anglo American Upgraded to Buy at Citi
    Asos Upgraded to Buy at Citi
    Lagardere Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley
    Ferrexpo Upgraded to Neutral at Citi
    AA PLC Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays
    NetEnt Downgraded to Hold at SEB Equities
    Adyen Downgraded to Hold at Berenberg
    DNA Downgraded to Hold at SEB Equities
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  15. JamesIG
    Expected index adjustments 
    Please see the expected dividend adjustment figures for a number of our major indices for the week commencing 16th July 2018. If you have any queries or questions on this please let us know in the comments section below. For further information regarding dividend adjustments, and how they affect  your positions, please take a look at the video. 


    NB: Special Divs are highlighted in orange 
    Special Dividends
    No special divs this week.
    How do dividend adjustments work? 
    As you know, constituent stocks of an index will periodically pay dividends to shareholders. When they do, the overall value of the index is effected, causing it to drop by a certain amount. Each week, we receive the forecast for the number of points any index is due to drop by, and we publish this for you. As dividends are scheduled, public events, it is important to remember that leveraged index traders can neither profit nor lose from such price movements.
    This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  16. JamesIG
    Asian session solid on reduced trade war fears. UK equity markets follow suit, along with a strong bidding war emerging for Sky, giving a green day for the FTSE yesterday and a positive start to the day today.  However data from China today showing a record trade surplus risks further inflaming trade tensions.  Trump is visiting the UK and has said that PM May is executing Brexit incorrectly. Trump's comments suggest May's Brexit plan is likely to kill hopes of a US trade deal. Brent crude sees it's biggest decline in 2 years, dropping as much as 6.9% yesterday. Earning season is kicking off in the US. Featured IGTV video below.  Asian overnight: Trade fears continue to recede, as they have done ever since Tuesday night’s brief panic, with a solid session from Asian markets following on from a good day for US equities.  A softer tone from China and their willingness to resume trade talks with the US is helping a risk on environment as most markets extend near term gains at present. While global equity markets are trading mostly firmer overnight, China's Shanghai Composite has given up 0.4% in early trade. Trade balance data from the region saw a larger than expected surplus realised as exports grew while imports slowed. A new record high for the Nasdaq confirmed the strength of this market, representing an interesting ‘safe haven’ from trade concerns. Australian stocks bucked the trend however, as financials dropped 0.7% to see the index drop 0.3% overall.
    Brent crude has seen it's biggest decline in 2 years dropping as much as 6.9% yesterday, a huge move for the black gold, on the back of Libya's state owned oil company saying that it is planning on increasing supply to match the current demand increase. They have also said they are looking at opening all four export channels that have been closed for the last month. This comes on the back of significant worries for energy traders with the Trump tariffs constantly knocking on the door, increasing fears that a knock on to global growth is just around the corner. Today sees the weekly Baker Hughes rig count from the US which is worth keeping an eye on.
    UK, US and Europe: President Trump has been causing mayhem in Europe already this week, and now he brings his special brand of magic to the UK. Having dined with the PM last night, today he is in the papers decrying her Brexit deal, setting us up for a fascinating press conference. The economic calendar is sparse today, but US earnings season gets underway in earnest with the release of bank earnings from Citigroup, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
    South Africa: The Jse AllShare index is expected to open up modestly firmer this morning in line with the mostly positive short term global market sentiment. The rand has clawed back further strength against the majors, which should aid initial gains on local banking and retail counters. BHP Billiton is down 0,7% in Australia suggestive of a softer start for local diversified resource counters. Tencent Holdings is trading more or less flat in Asia, suggestive of a flat start for major holding company Naspers. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    3pm – US Michigan consumer confidence index (July, preliminary): forecast to fall to 98.1 from 98.2. Market to watch: USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Workspace Group has seen lettings fall 5% in Q1, though enquiries have risen. Three refurbishment projects completed in June, and six more are expected in this financial year.  DCC said that Q1 profits were in line with expectations, and that it continues to expect profit o be weighted towards the second half of the year. It has also acquired two firms, Stampede and Kondor, with a combined enterprise value of £110 million.  Experian has started the year well, in line with forecasts, with overall revenue growth of 10% in Q1 (at constant exchange rates).  Ashmore saw assets fall $2.6 billion to $73.9 billion for the quarter to 30 June. Despite net inflows, a seasonal slowdown and a stronger US dollar had hit emerging markets hard.  Dawn (SA)  Revenue for FY18 declined by 19/1% to R3.5bn. In H1 F2018 revenue declined by 19,8% and in H2 F2018 revenue declined by 18,3%. Volumes in F2018 declined by 19,1% and price inflation remained flat. Diageo upgraded to buy at Goldman
    Evraz upgraded to buy at Renaissance Capital
    IMI upgraded to buy at HSBC
    Norwegian Air upgraded to buy at SEB Equities
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  17. JamesIG
    A look at our in-person seminars
    Earlier this summer we arranged our largest ever event in Scandinavia, with John Bollinger the creator of the technical Bollinger Bands indicator as a keynote speaker. Other speakers included Lee Sandford, an IG client and the founder of Trading College, and our local market analyst, Erik Hansén.
    The events, attended by about 450 prospective and live IG clients, were held in Oslo and Stockholm and followed a very similar ‘roadshow’ pattern which some of our other offices in Europe have put on for our client base. It’s always great to meet clients face to face and discuss trade ideas and market opportunity, as well as receive feedback and suggestions about our products.
    Have a look at a couple of the links posted at the end of this article to see if there are any live events, seminars, or webinars you can sign up to. Also make sure you’ve opted in to our emails so you can stay up to date and informed on any one off events we want to let you know about! You can find this in My IG Dashboard > Settings > Communication Preferences.
    When preparing for this event we listened to feedback from our client base who were keen on us bringing in successful traders and prominent people within the industry to talk about their experiences and share their trading insights.
     
    Trading strategies
    The evening started with IG’s own Erik Hansen welcoming everyone and introducing the presenters, as well as giving a quick overview of IG and our trading platform for those who hadn’t used it before. Erik also spoke about a few trading strategies and tools that help clients find interesting buy/sell opportunities, such as our market insights news and analysis, trading signals, and IG’s charting packages. We have a few strategy articles on IG.com which may be worth checking out to get a feel of the things discussed.
    Charting the value of technical analysis 16 candlestick patterns every trader should know How to trade a head and shoulders pattern Pivot point trading strategies Ichimoku Cloud trading strategies explained Next up was Lee Sandford who told us how he uses Fibonacci in his trading and how he combines it with MACD and stochastics. Lee also showed how he finds business opportunities with good risk reward by identifying interesting turning points in the market. There are a couple of videos posted below which may be interesting for some when we had Lee in the London office with IGTV, and an article on using the Fibonacci tool to trade.
    Last up was John Bollinger himself, who gave us a practical view on Bollinger Bands and trading techniques like "Pattern recognition", as well as setups like "W bottoms" and "squeeze". Bollinger Bands can be a great trading tool for the technical analysts amongst you and there are countless strategies and videos online which are worth having a look over. We have a special Bolling Bands article written by IG's own Joshua Mahony on the IG.com website to get you started. 

     
    Something of interest
    Each speaker was strong in their own right, but what really made the event a success was the breadth of the spectrum we were able to cover – ensuring there was something of interest to both beginners and advanced traders.
    We saw a good amount of 'chatter' across social media, both beforehand and during the event itself, and we received some great feedback from those who came and chatted afterwards.
    We really want to hear from people if they would like a similar event in their city. We are constantly working with our clients and listening to feedback to improve our offering, and seminars and events like this are no different.
    Drop us a message below if this is something you’d be interested in, and let us know the sort of event, or guest speakers, you would be keen on hearing from.

    Live events, seminars and online webinars near you
    Online webinars and courses can be found on IG Academy with live trading sessions available too. Make sure your email notifications are on if you want to keep up to date with one off events. Our South African offices have weekly in-person seminars in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Singaporean clients can check out in-person trading seminars (scroll down the page).
      Lee Sandford IGTV videos
     
    Hope you enjoyed this insight
    Happy trading
    James
  18. JamesIG
    Asian overnight: Market volatility remains evident throughout Asia, with yesterday’s sharp tumble being followed up by a strong rebound overnight. Chief amongst those gainers were the Chinese markets, which gained ground despite the ongoing trade war with the US. Suggestions that China and the US could resume trade talks has helped boost short term market sentiment. Crude prices were also fighting back in the wake of the biggest one-day decline in more than two years yesterday.
    UK, US and Europe: Looking ahead, a relatively quiet European session sees industrial production data from the eurozone take precedence in the lead up to the latest ECB monetary policy minutes. Meanwhile, the US will be keeping a close eye out for the CPI inflation data and unemployment claims number.
    South Africa: We are expecting a higher open on the local SA bourse today as US Futures and Asian markets rebound this morning. Emerging market currencies and metal prices are in turn finding some reprieve today. Tencent Holdings is up 0.5% in Asia suggestive of a positive start for major holding company Naspers. BHP Billiton is trading 0.6% lower in Australia suggestive of a slightly softer start for locally listed diversified miners. Mining production and sales data is scheduled for release at 11:30am and Manufacturing production and sales data is scheduled for release at 1pm today. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    10am – eurozone industrial production (May): expected to be 2.8% YoY and 0.8% MoM, from 1.7% and -0.9% respectively. Market to watch: EUR crosses

    1.30pm – US CPI (June), initial jobless claims (w/e 7 July) headline CPI to be 2.9% YoY and 0.2% MoM, from 2.8% and 0.2% respectively. Core CPI to be 0.2% MoM and 2.3% YoY, from 0.2% and 2.2% respectively. Initial jobless claims to fall to 227,000 for the week, from 231,000 a week earlier. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Dunelm said that store like-for-like sales were up 1% to £805 million for the year to 30 July, while online sales rose 37.9% like-for-like to £105.4 million. Pre-tax profit is expected to be £102 million for the full year.  ASOS expects full-year profit to be in line with forecasts, as total sales rose 22% to £802.7 million for the four months to 30 June. Full-year pre-tax profit is expected to be around £101 million.  B&M European Value Retail said that it enjoyed a strong start to the year, with revenue growth of 21.3% overall in the quarter, up 1.6% on a like-for-like basis.  Aker BP upgraded to overweight at JPMorgan
    Hapag-Lloyd raised to neutral at Goldman
    Maersk upgraded to buy at Goldman
    Roche upgraded to buy at Berenberg
    ITV downgraded to neutral at Goldman
    Pagegroup downgraded to hold at Kepler Cheuvreux
    Sky cut to neutral at Macquarie
    Veidekke downgraded to hold at SEB Equities
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  19. JamesIG
    The Trump house looks to impose 10% tariffs on $200 bln of Chinese goods. Shanghai and Hong Kong equity markets drag down the wider overnight Asian session. The bidding war on Sky continues with Murdoch's Fox offering £14/share beating Comcasts previous £12.50. Copper and zinc slide to 1-year low, oil also sharply lower on trade war fears. Asian overnight: Asian markets were back in the red overnight, as Donald Trump has once again ramped up trade war fears, driving away any optimism built in recent days. With Trump starting the process that will ultimately lead to the imposition of tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, there is reason to believe we are entering the next stage of the trade war between the two countries. Unsurprisingly we have seen losses across the board overnight, with the heaviest falls centred upon the Chinese and Hong Kong markets. US and European futures are trading lower this morning as well.
    UK, US and Europe: Looking ahead, central banks are in focus, with appearances from ECB and BoE governors Mario Draghi and Mark Carney. The big event of the day comes in the form of the Bank of Canada rate decision, where the committee is expected to push interest rates higher for the first time in 2018. Also keep an eye out for US PPI, and crude oil inventories data.
    South Africa: We are expecting a softer open on the local SA index as the trade war narrative see's escalation once again. We have seen some strength returning to the dollar and in turn mostly weaker commodity prices and a softer rand. Tencent is trading 2.3% lower in Asia this morning, suggestive of a similar start for major holding company Naspers. BHP Billiton is trading 1.3% lower in Australia, suggestive of an initial decline for local resource counters. A softer rand is expected to continue to weigh on financial counters as well as local retail counters. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – US PPI (June): forecast to be 0.1% from 0.5% MoM, while core PPI falls to 0.2% from 0.3%. Market to watch: USD crosses
    3pm – Bank of Canada rate decision: rates expected to remain at 1.25%. Market to watch: CAD crosses
    3.30pm – US EIA crude inventories (w/e 6 July): stockpiles expected to fall by 230,000 barrels from a 1.5 million barrel drop a week earlier. Markets to watch: Brent, WTI
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Sky has agreed new terms for its takeover by 21st Century Fox, with the US firm offering £14 per share, up from the previous £10.75 per share.  
    Burberry reported a 3% rise in like-for-like sales for Q1, and there was no change to full year guidance. 
    Indivior said that guidance for its financial year was ‘no longer valid’, as a rival generic product in the US has a major impact on operations. The revenue impact could be $25 million for 2018. 
    Barratt Developments expects record profit for the year, bolstered by Help to Buy. Pre-tax profits are expected to be £835 million, from £765.1 million a year ago. The firm completed 17,579 homes, compared to 17,395 last year, while the number of plots sold was up 4%. 
    Coca-Cola HBC upgraded to buy at Jefferies
    Drax upgraded to outperform at Macquarie
    LPKF upgraded to buy at HSBC
    HSBC upgraded to overweight at JPMorgan
    UBS upgrade Barclays Africa from sell to neutral with a target price of 19700c
    BHP downgraded to hold at Renaissance Capital
    CYBG downgraded to underperform at KBW
    Trelleborg downgraded to hold at SEB Equities
    Virgin Money downgraded to market perform at KBW
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  20. JamesIG
    A lack of trade war news is jumped on by Asian equity markets which rally for a third consecutive session. Boris Johnson follows David Davis and resigns from his position of Foreign Secretary sparking speculation of a rebellion. Oil dropped yesterday after Merkel and Li commit to Iran nuclear deal, before supply shortages and strikes in of oil workers in Norway aided the reversal for brent and WTI to finish up. Gold prices inch up amid the continued Brexit uncertainty, whilst subdued dollar assists commodities.  Asian overnight: Asian markets failed to sustain their overwhelmingly positive start to the week, with the overnight session seeing gains in Japanese and Hong Kong markets counteracted by weakness in China and Australia. Energy stocks were in focus amid a rise in crude prices, while the pound recovered much of the losses seen in the wake of yesterday’s political rollercoaster ride. On the data front, Chinese inflation data moved higher as expected, with CPI rising from 1.8% to 1.9%, while PPI jumped from 4.1% to 4.7%.
    UK, US and Europe: Despite two years of hashing out a brexit plan and continued discussions with the EU, and a confirmation by May that she had secured an agreement on Britains biggest foreign and trading policy in nearly 50 years, two UK MP's quit citing a change of heart in something the cabinet had agreed on last week.  Looking ahead, the UK remains in focus, with the first monthly GDP reading from the ONS set to be released. This comes amid the release of goods trade balance data, industrial, and manufacturing production figures, ensuring the pound remains in focus. Finally, watch out for the ZEW economic survey from Germany, with eurozone sentiment in the spotlight.
    South Africa: Global markets are trading mixed this morning as US Futures continue overnight gains in US equity markets, while the Shanghai Composite and Australia All Ordinaries Indices trade lower today. While the trade war narrative remains in markets investor focus will now find a further catalyst in the US earnings season which commences this week. Precious metal prices are trading relatively unchanged this morning, although base metal prices looked to have commenced with a rebound. The rand has firmed, particularly against a weakening pound following yesterday's resignation of UK ministers. Tencent Holdings is trading 2.3% lower in Asia, suggestive of a similar start today for major holding company Naspers. BHP Billiton is trading 1.09% higher this morning in Australia, suggestive of a positive start for local diversified miners. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    9.30am – UK trade balance (May): deficit forecast to narrow to £1.2 billion from £5.3 billion. Market to watch: GBP crosses
    10am – German ZEW economic sentiment (July): forecast to rise to -14 from -16.1. Market to watch: EUR crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Ocado has seen a first half loss of £9 million, compared to a £7.7 million profit a year ago. Revenue was up 12.1% to £800 million. 
    Kier said that it expected underlying profit to be in line with forecasts, and while poor weather has hit activity, volumes have returned to levels in line with expectations. 
    TP ICAP has downgraded earnings forecasts for the year, due to rising costs and lower-than-forecast benefits from the recent merger. Finance costs will rise, as will staff compensation. 
    Tsogo Sun Holdings - Further to the cautionary announcements issued by Tsogo, the last of which was issued on  SENS on 31 May 2018, the board of directors of Tsogo  is pleased to announce that Akani Egoli Proprietary Limited, Silverstar Casino Proprietary Limited, Tsogo Sun Casinos Proprietary Limited, Tsogo Sun KwaZulu Natal Proprietary Limited and Tsogo Sun Newcastle Proprietary Limited, all  of which are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Tsogo and Tsogo, Listed Investments Proprietary Limited and Cassava Investments Proprietary Limited, have entered into a sale of shares and subscription agreement with Hospitality Property Fund Limited and its wholly-owned  subsidiary Merway Fifth Investments Proprietary Limited for the disposal by the  sellers to Hospitality of a portfolio of seven mixed-use casino precinct properties  for an aggregate purchase consideration of R23 billion.
    Acacia Mining upgraded to overweight at Barclays
    Ascential upgraded to add at Peel Hunt
    Chemring Group raised to overweight at Barclays
    UBS upgrade Barclays Africa from sell to neutral with a target price of 19700c
    Computacenter cut to underweight at Barclays
    Straumann cut to market perform at Bernstein
    Temenos cut to underweight at Barclays
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  21. JamesIG
    David Davis resigns from his poll position as Brexit secretary. Sterling feels the pinch.   Global equity markets rally on US jobs relief, whilst dollar falters.  Balanced U.S. jobs data suggest Fed can stay gradual on hikes  Oil inches up whilst gold gains on the weaker dollar. NYSE technology chief has jumped ship to join the Winklevoss ‘bitcoin billionaires’ cryptocurrency venture as their first CTO for Gemini. Asian overnight: Asian markets have seen substantial gains overnight, as we see a continued feedback from Friday’s strong US jobs data and easing fears over the US - China trade war. The US non-farm jobs report alluded to an improving labour market with 213 000 people being added t the payroll last month, where expectation was for 195000 people to have been added. The dollar has softened somewhat lifting commodity prices, in particular that of precious metals.
    UK, US and Europe: The overnight resignation of UK Brexit Secretary David Davis had added a focus onto the pound, with the weekend gap higher erased as markets seek to find answers of what this means for negotiations with the EU. British Chambers of Commerce believe forward looking indicators predicting the growth of the economy are not strong enough to warrant a rate rise at the next MPC meeting on August 2nd. A poll conducted by the group reviewed more than 6000 firms from the UK.
    The economic calendar looks relatively quiet for the day ahead, and that bullish theme overnight seems likely to carry through into European trade. Look out for appearances from ECB governor Mario Draghi, alongside BoE member Broadbent. 
    South Africa:  The rand has managed to claw back some of its recent losses, as outflows from emerging markets halt for the time being. We are expecting broad-based gains on the JSe initially, with a stronger rand aiding a rebound in local banking and retail counters. BHP Billiton is up 2% in Australia suggestive of a positive start for resource counters. Tencent Holdings is up 2.53% suggestive of a positive start for local holding company Naspers.   
    Company earnings: Pepsi will report second quarter results tomorrow, whilst fashion house Burberry and America's Delta Airlines will follow on Wednesday and Thursday respectively. We also see big banknames Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup finish the week on Friday.
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Centamin said that gold production fell 25% in Q2, due to low metal grades at its Egypt mine. Production was expected to be 505,000 to 515,000 ounces for the full year. 
    Purplebricks has completed the acquisition of Canadian estate agency Duproprio/Comfree, for £29.3 million.
    Murray & Roberts Holdings (SA) - Shareholders are referred to the announcement released on SENS today by Aveng regarding a notification received from ATON on Thursday, 5 July 2018, indicating that ATON and its wholly owned subsidiary ATON Austria Holdings GmbH, have in aggregate, acquired an interest in the ordinary shares of Aveng, such that the total interest in the ordinary shares of Aveng now amounts to 25.42% of the total issued ordinary shares of
    Aveng. 
    Beazley upgraded to top pick at RBC
    G4S upgraded to top pick at RBC
    Meggitt upgraded to buy at Berenberg
    TalkTalk upgraded to neutral at JPMorgan
    UBS upgrade Barclays Africa from sell to neutral with a target price of 19700c
    Nedbank Limited’s (SA) national scale rating was upgraded to ‘zaAA+’ from ‘zaAA’ by S&P
    Hargreaves Lansdown cut to underweight at JPMorgan
    Virgin Money cut to equal-weight at Barclays
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  22. JamesIG
    Expected index adjustments 
    Please see the expected dividend adjustment figures for a number of our major indices for the week commencing 9th July 2018. If you have any queries or questions on this please let us know in the comments section below. For further information regarding dividend adjustments, and how they affect  your positions, please take a look at the video. 

    NB: Special Divs are highlighted in orange 
    Special Dividends
    No special dividends this week.
    How do dividend adjustments work? 
    As you know, constituent stocks of an index will periodically pay dividends to shareholders. When they do, the overall value of the index is effected, causing it to drop by a certain amount. Each week, we receive the forecast for the number of points any index is due to drop by, and we publish this for you. As dividends are scheduled, public events, it is important to remember that leveraged index traders can neither profit nor lose from such price movements.
    This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  23. JamesIG
    Trump tariffs now in effect, however markets have generally priced this in. Fed hints at last nights FOMC that it could raise rates twice more this year. Greenback gains removing some of the earlier gains from GBPUSD. Carney warns that Trumps trade tariffs could damage the global economy knocking up to 2.5 percentage points of global growth over three years, but has warned Trump that these tariffs will hurt the US the most. Carney still upbeat about UK growth. New figures show that UK high street retailers could suffer the ‘worst year on record’. Copper extends losses on worries about global growth. The metal, seen as a bellwether of economic health, has hit a fresh 11 month low in London's LME. This week alone the metal has shed nearly 5% which has put it on it's steepest weekly drop since mid November 2017. Asian overnight: Asian markets were in surprisingly positive mood overnight, as a dovish Fed meeting helped ease any fears over the ramp up in tariffs between the US and China today. The imposition of tariffs on $34 billion worth of goods in either direction have done little to market sentiment, with much of the implications seemingly priced in. However, we have since seen Donald Trump mention the possibility of adding another $300 billion on top of the $200 billion in goods already mentioned in the past. Markets are however gaining despite this trade war result, suggesting that perhaps the news has already been priced in. The rebound in global markets should be treated with caution as we await further retaliation from China and the suggested escalation from the US regarding this matter. Overnight data saw Japanese household spending fall, while average cash holding improved significantly.
    UK, US and Europe: A busy day for the US follows a relatively quiet economic calendar in Europe, with one of the main figures already released in the form of the German industrial production number (2.6% from -1.3%). The focus for most will be the US and Canadian jobs report, with markets set to see whether the headline NFP number will follow the ADP figure lower. With market expectations of a September already elevated, todays jobs figures will add another important piece of that puzzle for traders.
    South Africa: South Africa's local equity market is expected to initially follow gains in the US and Asia, although could trade tentatively into the US employment data releases this afternoon. South Africa's gold and foreign exchange reserves for June 2018 were reported to have been recorded at slightly lower levels than in the previous month. The rand has managed to claw back some strength today which is expected to aid gains in local banking and retail counters. BHP Billiton is trading 0.85% higher in Australia this morning suggestive of a positive start for local resource counters. Tencent Holdings is up 0.26% in Asia, suggestive of a marginally positive start for major holding company Naspers, although the stronger rand may temper some of these gains. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.30pm – US non-farm payrolls (June): payrolls expected to fall to 190K from 223K, while the unemployment rate holds at 3.8%. Average hourly earnings forecast to be 0.2% higher MoM, from 0.3%. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses

    1.30pm – Canada employment data (June): 17,500 jobs expected to have been created, from a 7500 fall in May. Unemployment rate to hold at 5.8%. Market to watch: CAD crosses

    3pm – Canada Ivey PMI (June, seasonally-adjusted): forecast to fall to 60.7 from 62.5. Market to watch: CAD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    Glencore, the copper, nickel and iron ore mining specialist, announced it will initiate a $1bn share buy back scheme.
    Stobart said that it had started the year ‘satisfactorily’, and has also announced a new five-year lease partnership with Ryanair. 
    Rolls-Royce has sold its commercial marine business to Norwegian firm Kongsberg for £500 million. 
    Eurazeo upgraded to buy at HSBC
    ITV upgraded to buy at SocGen
    Petra Diamonds raised to buy at Panmure Gordon & Co
    Shell upgraded to buy at DZ Bank
    Daily Mail downgraded to sell at SocGen
    Direct Line cut to equal-weight at Barclays
    Esure downgraded to underweight at Barclays
    Pearson downgraded to hold at SocGen
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
  24. JamesIG
    IG Product Update July 2018
    We recently made a post on Community showcasing a number of ways you can leave feedback and suggest improvements regarding our products and services. I wanted to follow up with our first ever ‘Product Update’ post so you can see some of the recent improvements we have made on the back of our continued two way communication which has helped IG become the global leader. 
     
    The recent updates include,
    Partially close positions via charts Market name watermarks for all charts New ether/bitcoin (ETH/BTC) crypto pair (and vote on which NEW crypto asset you are most interested in) Changes to weekend overnight funding An improved way to get in contact with Trading Services  
    Partially close positions via charts
    This brand new feature is now available on charts for both the web trading platform and on mobile. When ‘1-click dealing’ is not enabled you will be able to confirm whether or not you want to close the whole position, or to partially close via a pop up dialogue box. To use this functionality click 'close' (1) on the chart, change the 'Sell' value (for example in this screenshot you can change 4 to 2 to only close half the position), followed by 'Submit'. The window will show the ‘Closing P&L’ as well as the ‘Margin Returned’. 

     
    Market name watermarks for all charts
    To add clarity and ease of use it is now possible to display the name of the market in the background of the charts. This feature is disabled by default but can be activated from the “customise appearance” menu which is brought up by right clicking on the chart, ticking the “show watermark” checkbox, and clicking 'Apply'. Once activated every charts will start showing the market name. The watermark will also be displayed on the image produced using the “export chart” option.
    This should be an incredibly useful feature for those who have a number of charts open at the same time, as well as those who share their chart set ups online, with friends, and on IG Community.

     
    New ether/bitcoin cryptocurrency pair
    The ETH/BTC pair has been a tradable cryptocurrency asset on the IG platform for a couple of months and is calculated by taking the mid-price of ether and dividing it by the mid-price of bitcoin. We then adjust the decimal (in much the same way as we do for our FX pairs) to make the number easier to trade on the IG platform. A single point is anything to the left of the decimal.
    For example;
    Ether price:   440 USD
    Bitcoin price:   6150 USD
    ETH/BTC:   440 / 6150 = 0.07154
    IG platform price:   715.4
    One point means:   A price move from 715.4 up to 716.4 (or down to 714.4) would be one point.
     
    This is a great addition to our cryptocurrency offering as it gives a new way to gain exposure to the sometimes volatile market conditions of virtual currencies. Unlike trading other highly correlated cryptos, the ETHBTC pair gives a different trading opportunity which trend followers, technical analyst, and fundamental traders alike may enjoy. 
    We are also looking to our IG Community members and other IG clients to see which new crypto asset they are interested in (which IG doesn't currently offer). You can check out this poll to vote on which new crypto asset you are most interested in. Feel free to add comments and questions to the post if you would like to chat further. 

     
    Changes to weekend overnight funding
    We have also changed overnight funding on cryptocurrency positions held over the weekend. Previously, we were charging three nights funding on Wednesday to account for the weekend (in the same way as the majority of conventional FX pairs are calculated on a T+2 basis), but seeing as we offer these markets on Saturday and Sunday it is more appropriate to charge on a daily basis.
    We will also begin charging overnight funding for weekend index positions held through 10pm (UK time) Saturday and Sunday. The charges will be calculated in exactly the same way as our weekday indices. It’s also worth noting that anyone with AUD denominated contracts will be charged based on their positions at 10pm (UK time).
     
    An improved way to get in contact with Trading Services
    If you have ever had a query relating to your IG account, your trade activity, or the financial markets then it’s likely you’ve spoken to one of our Trading Services representatives. Over the last couple of years we have also rolled out IG Academy, a Help and Support Centre, and a new IG Community to better answer your questions.
    Recently we have rolled out a brand new ‘Contact Us’ page on IG.com. This page contains a web browser contact form which will automatically allocated your contact query to the correct department, increasing the speed of a resolution and reply.  
     
    I hope you find the above updates useful.
    You can find out how to submit feedback to IG here if you want to continue to help shape the future of IG.
    Any questions, just ask. 
     

  25. JamesIG
    Asian markets fall for the fourth day and major currencies are generally trading in a tight range.  MSCI Asia-Pacific index down 0.5% whilst Japan's Nikkei (the Japan 225) loses 1%. USD slightly softer going into US Initial Jobless Claims and FOMC minutes later today. Gold is holding steady before Fed minutes, whilst copper and zine are stuck near their one year lows on trade woes. Oil prices fall as Trump slams OPEC on twitter and blames the cartel for rising gas prices. This issue has been raised a number of times over the last few weeks as it could cause a major issue for the 'Trumphouse' going into the November midterms. Meanwhile China's duty on U.S. crude looms. Goldman Sachs are still bullish on Commodities as a whole and believe trade war fears have been overdone. "All of these concerns have been oversold. Even soybeans, the most exposed of all assets to trade wars, is now a buy." Clarification by the FCA on PPI compensation could means UK banks may have to add to the £45bn they’ve already set aside for claims. FMOC later today. Asian overnight: Asian markets traded lower once more, as market sentiment continues to suffer in anticipation of the impending Sino-US tariffs on $34 billion worth of goods. Yesterday’s tweet from Donald Trump calling for lower oil prices has had a knock on effect to the equity markets and tempered some of the gains seen through the week thus far.
    UK, US and Europe: Looking ahead, the focus shifts from the UK to the US, with yesterday’s Independence Day meaning we will see markets on the other side of the Atlantic play catch up with Europe. Appearances from BoE governor Carney and ECB member Mersch will be the highlights for Europe, with markets more focused on the plethora of data points out of the US. ADP payrolls data, composite, manufacturing and services PMI figures in the afternoon pave the way for the latest FOMC minutes. Keep an eye out for the dollar for the impact of the days economic releases, while stock markets will be closely followed for how much they will follow yesterday’s lead in Europe.
    South Africa: After yesterdays public holiday, US futures are trading flat this morning while Asian markets continue to find short term pressure lending itself to a flat to lower start on our local bourse this morning. The dollar is trading relatively flat while commodity prices, which have a relatively large impact on the local SA index, trade mostly lower ahead of the US implementation of trade tariffs on China. BHP Billiton is trading 0.54% lower in Australia furthering the notion that we will see a softer start on locally listed resource counters today. Tencent Holdings is trading 0.5% lower on the Hang Seng, suggestive of a similar start for major holding company Naspers this morning. 
    Economic calendar - key events and forecast (times in BST)

    1.15pm – US ADP employment report (June): expected to rise to 180K from 175K. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    1.30pm – US initial jobless claims (w/e 30 June): forecast to be 221K from 227K. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    3pm – US ISM non-manufacturing PMI (June): forecast to fall to 58.2 from 58.6. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    4pm – US EIA crude inventories (w/e 29 June): expected to see stockpiles fall by 1.6 million barrels. Markets to watch: Brent, WTI
    7pm – FOMC minutes: these will provide further insight into the Fed’s decision to raise rates, as well as the shift on the committee that resulted in the dot-plot suggesting four rate hikes in 2018, from the previous three. Markets to watch: US indices, USD crosses
    Source: Daily FX Economic Calendar
    Corporate News, Upgrades and Downgrades
    China’s ZTE has received a 30 day trade ban relief from Trump. The US provide a third of the components needed by the smartphone manufacturer who have seen a 60% decline in share price wiping off $11bn from the company valuation since the trade war talks.
    Anglo American sees volatility spikes on take over rumours.
    Anglo American Platinum Limited (SA) has accepted an offer from Royal Bafokeng Platinum Limited ("RBPlat") to purchase its 33% interest in the Bafokeng Rasimone Platinum Mine joint venture (“BRPM JV") for a total purchase consideration of R1.863 billion.
    Associated British Foods said its full-year outlook was unchanged, as improvement at Primark is cancelled out by weakness in its sugar division. Group revenue for the 40 weeks to 23 June was up 3% overall, and 2% at actual exchange rates. Primark sales were up 6% on last year, but AB Sugar revenue was 17% lower. 
    Purplebricks suffered an adjusted operating loss of £21.3 million, despite strong growth in the UK and Australia. This compares to a £5.1 million loss in 2017. 
    Glencore has announced a $1 billion share buyback, which will run from today until the end of the year. 
    EasyJet carried 7.9 million passengers in June, up 2.3% from a year ago, while the load factor rose to 95.4% from 94.8%. 
    Aegon upgraded to buy at HSBC
    Bauer upgraded to buy at Kepler Cheuvreux
    Tullow upgraded to overweight at Barclays
    Daimler upgraded to buy at Bankhaus Lampe
    Hapag-Lloyd downgraded to neutral at Citi
    Kappahl downgraded to reduce at Kepler Cheuvreux
    Munich Re downgraded to neutral at JPMorgan
    Soco downgraded to underperform at RBC
    Featured Video from IGTV
    Please note: This information has been prpared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.

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Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Professional clients can lose more than they deposit. All trading involves risk.

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