As noted by the managers in their commentary, January turned out to be a record month with regard to the number of issued corporate bonds in the United States and a large volume of merger and acquisition deals. And the first results of financial statements have shown a growth of corporate profits.
RAM experts draw attention to the fact that a rapid growth of inflation was observed in the Euro zone due to rising prices for energy and food. In such conditions, the European economy data have surpassed expectations, and confidence of consumers and businesses has reached multi-year highs.
As noted in the review, "Inflation in the United States, as well as in Europe, has shown a strong growth against the background of increasing prices for energy and food. At the same time, lack of changes in the core inflation raises doubts as to the duration of the pace of inflation in both the United States and Europe. In this context, the main driver of the American economy - domestic consumption has shown a stable growth.”
On the political stage, the inauguration of the American president Donald Trump was in the spotlight last month, a number of decrees signed by him, as well as comments on the monetary policy of trading partners of the USA, and the American trade policy as a whole. “The first actions of the President have slightly moderated the optimism of investors regarding the Trump's reforms, but have not yet managed to exert a significant impact on the financial markets," said the experts.
The entire commodity sector has been favourably influenced by a weaker dollar and the absence of signs of slowing demand on the part of China. In light of this, prices for oil were stable. "Oil extraction cuts by OPEC and a weakening dollar have offset data on the growth of stocks of crude oil and petroleum products in the United States," said the Rietumu Group specialists.
The overview of RAM and relevant commentaries of experts can be found here.
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