Pre-Open Data
Key Data for the Week
- Thursday - US - Gross Domestic Product was revised up to 4.3% for the year ending Q4.
- Thursday - US - Initial Jobless Claims fell to 684,000 for the week ending 20 March, down from 781,000 the week prior. This is the first time weekly claims were below 700,000 since the beginning of the pandemic.
- Friday - UK - Retail Sales
Australian Market
The Australian sharemarket rose 0.2% yesterday, in a mixed session of trade. The Health Care sector led the gains as CSL rose 1.4% and Sonic Healthcare added 1.6%.
Travel stocks were stronger; Sydney Airport and Auckland International Airport added 1.4% and 1.2% respectively, while Flight Centre and Webjet rose between 0.5% and 1.0%.
Telstra added 0.9%, while Macquarie Telecom and Vocus Group both added 0.2% to help lift the Telecommunications sector.
Financials closed lower with the big four banks mixed; NAB and Commonwealth Bank rose 0.5% and 0.2% respectively, while ANZ and Westpac fell between 0.3% and 0.4%. AMP was down 3.6% before being placed in a trading halt, after it was reported CEO Francesco De Ferrari will resign after being with the company for less than three years.
The Information Technology sector was the weakest performer; Afterpay lost 1.9%, NEXTDC slipped 1.2% and Xero fell 1.1%.
The Australian futures market points to a 0.30% rise today, driven by stronger overseas markets.
Overseas Markets
European sharemarkets were mixed on Thursday, as the broad based STOXX Europe 600 slipped 0.1%. Swedish retailer H&M and German sports company Adidas dropped 1.8% and 6.1% respectively, after both companies became targets for Chinese social media boycotts, as backlash after they announced their concerns over the forced labour in the Chinese region of Xinjiang.
US sharemarkets closed higher overnight, after figures showed unemployment claims dropped to a one year low. All sectors closed higher, except Communication Services and Information Technology. Financials and Industrials led the gains; Wells Fargo added 3.1%, Citigroup lifted 2.4% and Bank of America added 2.1%, while Boeing lifted 3.3% after the company plans to resume the delivery of its 787 Dreamliners. Nike fell 3.4% as it also faces the same boycotts in China as H&M and Adidas.
By the close of trade, the Dow Jones rose 0.6%, the S&P 500 added 0.5% and the NASDAQ eked out 0.1%.
CNIS Perspective
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen this week signalled that President Joe Biden is willing to hike the corporate tax rate to pay for his administration's priorities.
The comment from Yellen comes as Washington lawmakers prepare for Biden's next move after Congress passed his US$1.9 trillion ‘American Rescue Plan’ earlier this month, a massive injection of spending intended to support businesses and workers.
Biden has vowed to soon propose a sweeping infrastructure package, speculated to be US$3 trillion, that will help the United States create jobs and fight climate change through a reduction in carbon emissions.
Yellen indicated Biden would propose raising the corporate tax rate to 28%, up from the current 21%, and explore ways for US corporates to move more of their operations back to the United States.
"I think a package that consists of investments in people, investments in infrastructure, will help to create good jobs in the American economy and changes in the tax structure will help to pay for those programs," Yellen said.
Despite only being in office since the beginning of the year, Biden has already been quick to implement his own pathway for a stronger and more environmentally conscious US economy.
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