Omicron fears have come and gone, as traders continue to look more towards the “Santa Claus rally.” The Santa Claus rally is the phenomenon at the end of the year when traders have to make up for any lagging behind their benchmarks for clients. This forces them into the stock market and buying every dip as it occurs. Because of this, stocks have outperformed just a bit during the course of the week as initial word of the variant is that it is not as deadly as once feared.
This week we have flash PMIs from around the world on Thursday, on Wednesday is the all important Fed decision, potentially the event of the week, and we also have rate decisions from the ECB and BOE. While we expect no drAMatic changes to the rates, it will be worth paying attention to the rhetoric used by the central bankers. This has the power to bring volatility to the markets. From the UK we also have some employment, inflation and retail sales data. Highlights of the earnings calendar will include FedEx and Adobe in the US.
Events
Tuesday
7:00 AM – UK employment data
1:30 PM – US PPI (November)
Wednesday
2:00 AM – China industrial production, retail sales
7:00 AM – UK CPI (November)
1:30 PM – US retail sales
3:30 PM – US EIA crude oil inventories
7:00 PM – Fed rate decision
Thursday
8:15 AM – 9:00 AM – French, German PMIs
9:30 AM – UK PMIs
12:00 PM – BOE rate decision
12:45 PM – ECB meeting
1:30 PM – US initial jobless claims
2:45 PM – US services & mfg PMI
Friday
7:00 AM – UK retail sales (November): sales to rise 4% MoM. Markets to watch: GBP crosses
9:00 AM – German Ifo index