US indices gained in Asian time during the Biden-Trump presidential debate but then retreated after President Trump cast doubt on whether he would accept the election’s outcome. S&P 500 was last 0.6% lower, with Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 falling close to 1%. European markets are following suit, with FTSE falling 0.4% and Euro STOXX 50 down 0.3%. In Asia, Hong Kong’s benchmark index defeated the global trend and climbed 1.2% higher while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell nearly 2%.
Norway and Britain have reached a bilateral agreement on fisheries, the Norwegian government said ahead of the United Kingdom’s full exit from the European Union at the end of the year. Norway is not a member of the EU but as a member of the European Economic Area, is subject to some EU laws. The framework agreement, which takes effect on Jan. 1, will govern control measures, licences and research, and also facilitate a mutual exchange of quotas. The deal will be signed today in London.
The US dollar rallied, set for its best monthly gain since July 2019, while the yen rose 0.2% to 105.60 per dollar, its strongest daily rise in nearly two weeks. Other major currencies slipped against the dollar after the US presidential debate, knocking the euro from a one-week high to $1.1736. The risk-sensitive Australian dollar fell 0.2% to $0.7118 and is headed for its worst month since March. China’s yuan held steady even after twin surveys showed strong factory activity growth, which backed recent signs of a rebound in broad sectors of the world’s second-biggest economy.
Britain suffered a record collapse in economic output in the second quarter of 2020 when COVID-19 lockdown measures were in force and people had few opportunities to spend, though the decline was slightly smaller than first estimated. Gross domestic product shrank by 19.8% in the three months to June compared with the first quarter, slightly less than the initial 20.4% estimate but still more than any other major advanced economy. The fall was the biggest since records began in 1955. Households saved a record 29.1% of their income in the second quarter. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said yesterday that he expected an annual decline of 7-10% in the third quarter. On the bright side, Britain’s current account deficit - one of the biggest vulnerabilities of the economy - shrank sharply to 2.8 billion pounds, its smallest in nine years, affected by the slump in global trade caused by the pandemic.
