Equity markets remain under pressure as eurozone and Korean concerns remain

Equity markets across Europe drifted, adding small gains as concerns around the eurozone debt crisis and Korean tensions weighed sentiment as the market sought to digest yesterday’s retracement. The UK’s FTSE 100 started the session positively but most gains were quickly eroded as the benchmark index returned to parity, as investors failed to garner enthusiasm for the brief early rally.

Stocks were mixed, with miners adding points to the index as some clients sought to purchase cheap stock after yesterday falls. Banks too remained in focus as the debt crisis remains top of the agenda. Nationalised banks RBS and Lloyds escaped investor wrath, adding small gains after their significant falls yesterday, Barclays bank however failed to escape the negative sentiment, not helped by a Wall Street Journal article, highlighting the inconsistency in the Basel guidelines that ultimately could come to undermine the banking sector further still.

Investors will be mindful of a host of data due today from America which will give further guidance as to the health of the US economy. The Thanksgiving holiday in the States, means Wednesday sees durable goods orders, jobless claims and the Michigan data all released on the same day. Despite anticipated low volumes across the water, such a glut of data is likely to keep investors on their toes, and we are likely to see some reweighting of portfolios before the long weekend.

Investors remain cautious over the global recovery and recent geopolitical developments, but there remains resilience in investor sentiment with a number of clients still looking to buy equity markets before the end of the year. A definitive resolution to both the Irish situation and tensions in the Korean peninsula could see equities markets reverse recent losses as we head towards Christmas.

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