Markets Update and Trump’s impeachment | Calamatta Cuschieri

MSE Equity Price Index traded lower after five days of increases, 0.31%. PG plc and Malta International Airport both ended the day in red 2.1%, €1.86 and 1.3%, €7.40 respectively. International Hotel Investments plc rose by 0.6% to reach the €0.885 price level. Similarly, RS2 Software plc regained by 0.5% to a price of €1.91. Conversely, GO plc decreased by 0.5% to the €4.36 level. Tigné Mall plc also rose by 0.5% to a price of €0.94.

Trade optimism outweighed Political concerns

European shares had a positive trading day after positive comments from China with regards to the trade talks. This was a result of welcoming relief amid growth worries and political distress. This positive news outweighed concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump’s impeachment. The London blue-chip index increased by 0.8% despite decreases in some stocks.

The pan-European STOXX index closed in positive territory by 0.6%, after weak purchasing managers’ surveys, concerns of Britain’s exit from the E.U. and other geopolitical worries. Trade optimism came around by Beijing saying it is a step closer to end communications with Washington and preparing to make progress in the trade talks coming October. It was a result of Trump’s overnight comment that a Sin-U.S. trade deal could happen in the close future.

U.S. stocks close slightly lower

 U.S. stocks ended in red as investors were concerned about news about the U.S.-China trade relations and distress in Washington with regards to a whistleblower complaint with regards President Trump. This is hsown clearly in the U.S. main indexes: Dow Jones Industrial Average down by 0.3%, S&P 500 decrease by 0.24% and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.58% lower.

The stocks that were most in focus were General Motors Co., Facebook Inc. and Beyond Meat Inc. General Motors rose by 1.35% after the company together with the United Autoworkers Union were reported to be close to an agreement to end strike. Facebook decreased by 1.47% due to a report saying that the company is subject of a U.S. Justice Department antitrust investigation. Beyond Meat increased by 11.58% as a result of news saying that McDonald’s Corp. will trail a plant-based burger made by Beyond Meat at 28 restaurants in Canada.

Trump’s Impeachment Inquiry

The whistleblower declared that senior White House officials tried to cover up all the details with regards to the phone call which happened between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian President. Trump demanded to know how the whistleblower got this information and implied that the source was a “close to a spy”. The call in question happened on the 25th of July 2019, President Trump pushed Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate his leading Democratic political rival, Joe Biden.

The complaint says that the call transcript was not stored in the usual system, instead it was stored in a separate system which is used for classified information. The Democratic Party is accusing Trump that he is seeking foreign help in the hope of giving Mr Biden a bad reputation by using military aid to Ukraine as a bargaining tool. Mr Biden is seeking Democratic nomination for the 2020 presidential election. U.S. President acknowledged that he blocked nearly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine days before his communication with Mr Zelensky, but denied that it was done to pressure the Ukrainian leader into investigating Mr Biden.

 

This article was issued by Peter Petrov, Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, https://cc.com.mt/. The information, view and opinions provided in this article are being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.