Trade ideas

At the time of writing, the stock markets were starting to come off their best levels. With this being the month- and quarter-end, there will be lots of repositioning today, which may mean lower stock prices later, given that we have been in a risk off market environment for much of September. In any event, volatility is here to stay.

Wall Street is fearful that Tesla deliveries could fall short of expectations, Tesco keeps showing why it’s the leading UK grocer, and Boohoo needs to show it can still complete a major turnaround before the end of the year.

What stocks are being discussed and traded today, and which ones are experiencing the sharpest moves before the bell?

Despite softer Eurozone inflation and German retail sales data, the EUR/USD climbed for the second day in the first half of Friday’s session. It was supported because of firmer risk tone across financial markets, driven by a weakness in US dollar and global bond yields. But rising oil prices are among reasons that could prevent the EUR/USD from rising much further.

After heavy selling pressure comes a big bounce. Ironically, today’s bounce in stocks appears to be triggered by softer-than-expected US data. The rationale is that weaker data will discourage the Fed from tightening its belt further, and simultaneously increases the chances of a sooner-than-expected rate cuts.

US stocks are edging lower after jobless claims highlighted the resilience in the US jobs market. The data adds to evidence showing that the US economy is holding up better than expected. This combined with higher oil prices fuels bets that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer. Fed Chair Powell is due to speak later.

What stocks are being discussed and traded today, and which ones are experiencing the sharpest moves before the bell?

Bond yields in Germany, UK and US continued to ascend in the first half of Thursday’s session, thus keeping US index futures under pressure. But the US dollar fell for a change, as major currency pairs staged an oversold bounce from key technical levels; the EUR/USD, for example, found support from around the 1.05 psychologically important level, which it had breached momentarily on Wednesday

The DAX finds itself at a 6-month low with Wall Street indices, with DAX futures also pointing to a weak open. Yields need to pull back for it to stand any chance of recovering, and if they do it may even take some steam out of the USD/CHF rally which is trying to tally up its 12th consecutive bullish day.

The ASX 200 has continued to show resilience around the key 7,000 support level, despite the surge on bond yields, negative sentiment and rising inflation. What if sentiment improves?

There’s been quite a bit of change since the FOMC rate decision last week and some markets are showing that more than others, begging the question as to whether there’s some re-pricing that’s left to be seen.

What stocks are being discussed and traded today, and which ones are experiencing the sharpest moves before the bell?

DAX falls to a 6-month low on fears of higher rates for longer. USD/JPY rises towards 150 ahead of US consumer confidence.

EUR/USD touched a fresh 6-month low and closed beneath the 1.06 handle. Whilst it could be argued it is oversold, we're yet to see any clear evidence of a market bottom. The FTSE 100 also looks set to move lower after repeatedly failing to close above the July high before momentum turned lower yesterday.

The bond rout and sharp rise in yields continue to take centre stage for sentiment. And the longer this trend persists, the greater the odds appear for indices to finally roll over. Given three key US indices are showing signs of stability around their respective support levels, it brings the potential for a minor bounce over the near-term. But if bond yields keep rising, any such bounce could prove futile for bulls.

The EUR/USD has been among a growing number of major FX pairs breaking to fresh multi-month lows. The euro’s latest losses come after the Dollar Index ended higher for the tenth consecutive week and as risk appetite remained low across financial markets, with major indices breaking further lower this morning. The EUR/USD will be among the key FX pairs to watch this week.

Cisco is preparing to complete its biggest acquisition ever by buying cybersecurity firm Splunk.