Good morning. The initial short at 6821 failed, and the FTSE managed to rise to 6840 in the end, then sold off, coinciding with a whopping rise in gold. Quite rare for gold to move so much so maybe something about to happen over Iraq. There wasn’t really a corresponding move in equites for that gold move, though you’d suspect it would be down if gold rises. Would tally with us still knowing on all these daily channel tops. Talking of which the 10 day Bianca channel top is now at 6811 – where we are, with the Raff at 6830.
US jobless news was slightly better, dropping by 6000 people.
Asia Overnight from Bloomberg
Asian stocks held near a six-year high, with the regional benchmark index on course for the longest run of weekly advances since August, as materials and technology companies dropped.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 0.1 percent to 145.26 as of 11:55 a.m. in Hong Kong. The gauge is on course to advance 0.8 percent this week after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said she expects U.S. interest rates to stay near zero for a “considerable time” after stimulatory bond buying ends.
“Investors need to be asking whether the Fed and Yellen will prove to be as stubbornly dovish on monetary policy as much of the commentary now assumes,” said Ric Spooner, chief strategist at CMC Markets Ltd. in Sydney. “Market thinking on this may be tested if U.S. economic growth and inflation rates continue to improve in coming months. With little on the slate in terms of economic releases, today may be a typically quiet session for markets.”
Regional Gauges
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index lost 0.5 percent. South Korea’s Kospi index fell 1.1 percent as Lotte Chemical declined 3.5 percent to 177,500 won and Samsung Electronics retreated 1.7 percent to 1.3 million won.
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index slid 0.7 percent and the Shanghai Composite Index retreated 0.5 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.2 percent, whileSingapore’s Straits Times Index dropped 0.2 percent. Taiwan’s Taiex Index fell 0.2 percent, with losses limited as HTC rose 2.6 percent to NT$136.50. Japan’s Topix index rose 0.2 percent.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) is on course for the longest weekly winning streak since August after closing yesterday at the highest level since June 2008. The gauge traded at 13.4 times estimated earnings yesterday compared with 16.6 for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and 15.6 for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
U.S. Futures
Futures on the S&P 500 dropped less than 0.1 percent today after the equity index climbed yesterday to a record high. Reports yesterday showed initial claims for unemployment benefits in the U.S. dropped by 6,000 people to 312,000 in the week to June 14, while a Bloomberg gauge of the U.S. outlook showed Americans are the most optimistic about the economy’s prospects in a year.
FTSE Outlook
Previous resistance of 6810 held as support in the end after that drop from 6840. Further rises above 6838 now target 6848 and 6887. However, the daily channel tops are in play, 6811 Bianca and 6830 Raff as mentioned above (both on 10 day). The pivot for today is 6808, so initial support there though I am thinking that breaks and we get a drop to 6784.