European Shares Struggle For Direction Ahead Of Holiday Break

RTTNews | 13 h 16 min atrás

(RTTNews) - European stocks were subdued on Monday in the run-up to Christmas.

The pan European STOXX 600 was little changed at 502.45 as investors avoided making big bets against the backdrop of political uncertainties in Germany and France, and lingering worries about Trump's tariff threats.

The German DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 were marginally lower while France's CAC 40 dipped 0.2 percent after France's new government announcement was postponed until Monday evening.

The U.S. dollar held steady after lower-than-expected U.S. core PCE inflation data for November suggested that the Federal Reserve may have gotten too negative on inflation.

The British pound fluctuated below 1.2600 as official data showed the U.K. economy failed to grow in the third quarter as a result of weaker demand for exports.

Real gross domestic product remained flat in the third quarter, revised down from the 0.1 percent rise estimated initially.

In corporate news, AstraZeneca rose about 1 percent after its lung cancer treatment Tagrisso gained EU approval on the back of "powerful results" from a phase III trial.

Aviva was marginally lower while Direct Line Insurance rallied nearly 3 percent. The latter's board has agreed to a £3.7bn takeover from Aviva, after previously rejecting bids from its insurance competitor.

Chesnara, a life and pensions consolidator, fell about 1 percent after announcing that it has reached a second portfolio acquisition deal with Canada Life Ltd., known as Canada Life UK, for a closed portfolio of unit-linked bonds and legacy pension business.

Swisscom rose half a percent after its planned acquisition of Vodafone Italia has been cleared by Italy's competition watchdog and its industry ministry.

Novo Nordisk jumped 9 percent after reporting disappointing trial results for its latest weight-loss drug CagriSema.

France's Renault was down 0.6 percent after Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda announced they had entered into official talks to merge and create the world's third-largest automaker by sales. Renault owns a minority stake in Nissan.

Knorr-Bremse AG shares fell more than 1 percent. The German brake systems manufacturer has officially sold its U.S. subsidiary Sheppard to Balmoral RHS Acquisition Corp., streamlining its focus on braking technologies and operational growth.

U.S. Dollar Gains Against Majors

The U.S. dollar rose against its major counterparts in the New York session on Monday, after the passing of a crucial funding bill that helped avert a year-end government shutdown.

RTTNews | 5 h 11 min atrás

Canadian Market Modestly Higher In Cautious Trade

The Canadian market is modestly higher a little past noon on Monday, recovering from early weakness, thanks to strong gains in some healthcare, technology and energy stocks. Investors are largely making cautious moves, digesting the nation's GDP and producer prices data.

RTTNews | 5 h 14 min atrás

U.S. New Home Sales Show Significant Rebound In November

After reporting a sharp pullback by new home sales in the U.S. in the previous month, the Commerce Department released a report on Monday showing a significant rebound by new home sales in the month of November. The Commerce Department said new home sales surged by 5.9 percent to an annual rate of 664,000 in November after plunging by 14.8 percent to a revised rate of 627,000 in October.

RTTNews | 7 h 5 min atrás

U.S. Consumer Confidence Unexpectedly Deteriorates In December

Consumer confidence in the U.S. has unexpectedly deteriorated in the month of December, according to a report released by the Conference Board on Monday. The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index tumbled to 104.7 in December from an upwardly revised 112.8 in November.

RTTNews | 7 h 7 min atrás

U.S. Durable Goods Orders Pull Back More Than Expected In November

New orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods slumped by much more than expected in the month of November, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Monday. The report said durable goods orders tumbled by 1.1 percent in November after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.8 percent in October.

RTTNews | 7 h 17 min atrás

FSIS Announces Recalls Of Pork, Beef Products

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service or FSIS has announced various recalls of ready-to-eat or RTE pork and beef bologna products, as well as raw pork sausage products. Perkins, Oklahoma-based Ralph's Packing Co. is recalling around 3,132 pounds of RTE pork and beef bologna products citing misbranding and undeclared milk, a known allergen.

RTTNews | 9 h 15 min atrás

Bay Street May Open With Slightly Negative Bias; GDP, PPI Data In Focus

Weak crude oil and gold prices point to a negative open for Canadian stocks on Monday. However, the market may climb higher if GDP and producer prices data, due this morning, turn out to be positive.

RTTNews | 9 h 28 min atrás

Swiss Franc Slides As European Shares Traded Higher

The Swiss franc weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Monday, as the European stocks traded higher heading into a holiday-shortened week.

RTTNews | 11 h 2 min atrás

EURUSD	1.03997	GBPUSD	1.25196	AUDUSD	0.62471
USDJPY	157.133	USDCAD	1.43751	USDCHF	0.89932