Squawk Box Europe Express

The S&P posted its strongest day of trade since June as U.S. stocks continue to rebound amid a pull-back in Treasury yields, with fears of higher interest rates easing. Apple jumps up to 5 per cent on the Nasdaq following a Warren Buffett endorsement in his annual letter to investors and after the reopening of its 270 U.S. stores. Video-calling firm Zoom is also in the green, going higher in l...

Last week’s U.S. Treasury yield highs recede with stock futures rising sharply. Sentiment has been partially boosted by higher prospects for stimulus with President Biden urging Senate to pass his $1.9tn Covid-19 stimulus bill after it was approved by the House of Representatives. Legendary investor Warren Buffett warns to “never bet against America” in his annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder le...

Equities sell off strongly across Asia with tech stocks being dumped hardest. On Wall Street, the Nasdaq suffers a fall of 3.5 percent - its worst session since October - as the 10-year bond yield rally gathers pace. EU leaders meet virtually to discuss the disorderly rollout of vaccines across the bloc. EC President Ursula Von Der Leyen remains bullish that targets will be met by summer however E...

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell allays U.S. inflation concerns in his testimony to the House, causing Asian markets to jump and Wall Street to pare back losses in another intra-day comeback. Berkshire Hathaway’s vice-chairman Charlie Munger slams “this new bunch of gamblers”, criticising SPACs, Tesla and cryptocurrencies for the increasingly frenzied speculation in the markets. This, as Gam...

Whipsawing on Wall Street. The Dow manages to claw back a 360-point loss to end yesterday’s session in the green following Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s attempts to ease concerns about higher rates and inflation during a Senate testimony. Bitcoin is also volatile, temporarily falling below the $50k-mark, but recouping some losses after payment company Square invested $170m in the c...

HSBC beats earnings expectations despite full-year profit falling by more than a third. Europe’s largest lender is promising to resume its dividend payout this year. Big tech companies weigh on the Nasdaq and S&P but the Dow moves to the upside on wider recovery optimism in the U.S. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is $15bn poorer, losing his title of world’s richest man to Amazon’s Jeff Bezos. The electri...

The UK is to ease lockdown restrictions with Prime Minister Boris Johnson set to detail his roadmap to recovery. All eyes are on the bond market with the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield hitting highs not seen since this time last year. Boeing grounds some of its 777 planes after a mid-air engine failure on a United Airlines flight causes debris to rain down on a Denver neighbourhood and prompts an eme...

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen tells CNBC in an exclusive interview that only major stimulus will rouse the American economy following “the worst year for economic growth since WW2.” Yellen also said President Biden’s administration will maintain his predecessor’s trade pressure on China. The GameStop saga comes to Washington with Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev going up against the House Financial...

It’s another busy day for earnings in Europe. Credit Suisse pre-tax Q4 profit slumps to a CHF88m loss as a slow post-virus recovery weighs on the lender. However, recent client activity is positively impacting its wealth management arm. Full-year revenue for 2020 at Airbus nose-dives by 30 per cent with an operating loss of €510m. The plane maker will also withhold its dividend this year. Mea...

The recent U.S. rally loses some steam. Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year hits a 12-month high, with St. Louis Fed President James Bullard telling CNBC that investors are eyeing a “roaring” pick-up in post-pandemic U.S. economic activity. In energy news, the Gulf region’s cold snap is keeping refineries offline while millions suffer power blackouts. Robust commodity prices have led to Rio Tinto posting...

BHP announces a record half-year dividend payout after soaring iron ore prices pushed the mining giant’s results to a seven-year high. Oil prices, meanwhile, rise after a cold snap across Texas and northern Mexico leaves millions without power, shutting wells and refineries across the region. In virus news, the WHO has granted the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccination emergency use approval wh...

President Trump is acquitted of inciting the fatal Capitol Hill mob attack last month, marking the second time he has survived impeachment in 12 months. In Italy, Mario Draghi is sworn in as Prime Minister after unveiling a new cabinet featuring lawmakers from across the political spectrum. He’s now tasked with addressing the country’s economy recovery following the Covid pandemic. Brent crude and...

Disney soars in extended trading after the media giant tops first-quarter earnings forecasts, while subscriber numbers near 95m. Female-focused dating app Bumble lists on Wall Street with shares spiking on the debut. Strong sales in China and soaring online orders help L’Oréal to a topline beat. In political news, President Biden warns senators that Beijing could outstrip Washington on infrastruct...

President Biden and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping speak on the phone for the first time with the new U.S. leader immediately raising the topics of trade and human rights. U.S. consumer prices are in focus as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stresses the need for a jobs drive to propel the economy, while revealing the central bank “explicitly” seeks to target an average inflation of 2 per cent a...

In a two-speed recovery, the Chinese manufacturing rebound continues to strengthen with factory inflation up for the first time in a year but consumer prices sink into deflationary territory. In Washington, six GOP senators cross the aisle to vote with Democrats to proceed with the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump over “inciting insurrection” in last month’s Capitol Hill violence...

U.S. equities and the Russell Index take a bullish turn once more with the Dow and the S&P 500 marking their longest winning streaks since August. Meanwhile, Tesla buys $1.5bn in Bitcoin, announcing plans to accept it as payment. The move pushes the cryptocurrency and its rivals Ethereum and Dogecoin to record highs. On the macro level, Goldman Sachs hikes its U.S. growth forecast after improv...

Asian equities respond to U.S. futures indications that last week’s rally – the markets’ best week since November - could continue. A poor U.S. jobs report on Friday raises hopes of a stimulus deal. In vaccine news, South Africa suspends inoculations after studies show that the jab created by Anglo-Swedish pharma giant AstraZeneca provides minimal protection against its national Covid variant. Mea...

Equities in the U.S. soar with the S&P 500 reaching fresh highs off the back of improving employment figures. This, as tech stocks continue to push the Nasdaq to new levels. Washington takes aim at the Reddit retail investor frenzy with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen vowing to review the episode with market regulators while hailing Wall Street’s resilience in the face of the rally. In va...

The former president of the ECB, Mario Draghi, answers the Italian president’s call to form a new unity government amid the worst national economic crisis in decades. Former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi – who withdrew his party from Giuseppe Conte’s coalition – tells CNBC that Draghi is the man to rescue Italy from the current political impasse. In energy news, crude hits a one-year high as OP...

It’s the end of an era as Jeff Bezos hands over the reins of Amazon to Web Services CEO Andy Jassy later this year. This, as the e-commerce titan reports a record $125bn in Q4 revenues. Alphabet shares soar in after-hours trade as earnings top expectations despite a $5.6bn loss from Google’s Cloud unit. In Europe, Banco Santander suffers a record annual loss of €8.7bn but insists it will pay out i...

Equities have rebounded following their worst week since October. Every S&P 500 sector is in the green with further optimism on the back of earnings due from Pfizer, Exxon Mobil, Amazon and Alphabet. Meanwhile, silver comes off an 8-year high. Posts on WallStreetBets deny retail investor Reddit groups are involved in the price move. U.S. President Joe Biden meets with GOP senators but rejects...

U.S. futures suffer a turbulent overnight session following last week’s heavy losses. Silver is now reportedly in the crosshairs of the short squeeze retail investors. In Washington, 10 Republican senators urge President Joe Biden to scale back his $1.9tn stimulus program but Democrats threaten to push the plan through themselves should they not receive support from across the aisle. China posts i...

Wall Street bounces back following its biggest sell-off since October. The retail investor frenzy heats up after Robinhood is slammed for restricting securities trade. But the app’s co-founder Vlad Tenev said the move intended to protect both GameStop and its customers. We hear exclusively from German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz who says that the fiscal measures taken by Berlin should lead t...

Wall Street sells off as equity markets suffer their worst session since October, with volumes spiking in the heaviest trading day since 2007. Apple posts its largest-ever quarterly revenue of $100bn as every category sees rising sales. Shares, however, sink in after-hours trading. Facebook stock is also down, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg blaming Apple’s privacy reforms despite the social media g...

Microsoft shares surge in after-hours trade on the back of strong demand for its cloud services. Guidance has also topped expectations. AstraZeneca has stood its ground over its vaccine roll-out, after Brussels slams the pharma giant for not redirecting UK-bound doses to the bloc. We hear from the GAVI CEO Seth Berkley who says that global supplies will increase soon. In corporate news, Italian le...