Friday saw most European benchmarks consolidate following a solid three-day rally. The market sentiment remains alive today, thanks to the global support measures taken in almost every region. However, investors around the world may be tempted to take some profits before the weekend. The spread of the virus doesn’t seem to be slowing down and has even accelerated strongly in the US during the last few days. The nation recently overtook China in terms of number of cases, following a surge in New York and the situation is likely to continue to weigh on investors’ risk appetite the longer no peak or curve inversion appears in sight in critical zones such as the US or western Europe.
Today’s trading is expected to remain volatile but lacking a clear direction. No major data release is due today and many traders are already looking ahead to next week’s developments on Europe’s strategy to contain the impact of the virus after leaders failed to reach a concrete plan yesterday. The Stoxx-600 Index is trading slightly lower with the price weighed down by the banking and mining sectors. The FTSE-MIB Index from Milan as well as the German DAX-30 are among the most resilient markets today with prices still consolidating inside a tight trading range. The DAX-30 Index is still trading above 9,745pts but recently failed to clear the 10,050pts zone. A fall through the lower band of the bullish channel may lead prices down towards the lower support levels at 9,440pts and 9,300pts.
