Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Monday, November 28:
1. OPEC works to hammer out “deal”
Oil prices showed volatility on Monday, as nerves were rattled by Saudi Arabia’s cancellation of talks with non-OPEC producers originally set for Monday to discuss curbing production because it felt the cartel would need to sort out its differences first.
Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih said over the weekend that oil markets would rebalance even without an output-limiting pact which markets took to suggest that a deal may not be reached at the official OPEC meeting on Wednesday.
The OPEC technical committee was gathered in Vienna on Monday to try and hammer out final details of an accord for the official meeting with most experts postulating that “some form of deal” would probably be penned.
After trading lower in Asian trading, oil staged a turnaround in early morning negotiation in Europe on a report that the Algerian oil minister was heading to Russia to try and salvage a deal.
U.S. crude oil futures slipped 0.04% to $46.04 at 5:57AM ET (10:57GMT), while Brent oil inched up 0.02% to $48.25.
2. Global stocks mixed with Italian referendum in focus
U.S. futures pointed to a lower open on Monday as investors took profit after a three-week winning streak and while traders eyed both OPEC and skittishness in Europe. At 5:59AM ET (10:59GMT), the blue-chip Dow futures fell 59 point, or 0.31%, S&P 500 futures lost 7 points, or 0.29%, and the Nasdaq 100 futures traded down 11 points, or 0.22%.
Elsewhere, European stocks were lower as the upcoming referendum in Italy dampened market sentiment. The FTSE MIB led the losses on Monday as concern over the banking system weighed. On Sunday, Italians will vote on constitutional reforms backed by the country’s Prime Minister Mateo Renzi with a “no” vote expected to take the victory, with market participants concerned that the results could cause another wave of crisis in the euro zone.
Earlier, Asian stocks ended mixed with the Nikkei 225 down on as the yen rose against the dollar.
3. Profit-taking pushes dollar lower
The dollar remained lower against the other major currencies on Monday, as investors continued to lock in profits from the greenback’s recent rally and as trading was expected to remain quiet with no major U.S. data expected throughout the day.
The greenback has been boosted by the view that a rate hike by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in December is a near certainty, with odds hovering at nearly 100%.
Speculation that the incoming Trump administration will implement fiscal policies and tax cuts that will spur economic growth and inflation have increased expectations for the Fed to tighten monetary policy.
Markets were already discounting a second rate hike in June 2017 with the odds at around 60%, according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
At 6:00AM ET (11:00GMT), the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.32% at 101.16, pulling away from Thursday’s 14-year peak of 102.12.
4. OECD ups U.S. growth forecasts
The OECD showed optimism on Monday that the U.S. will be able to drive global growth in 2017 based on assumptions regarding a “more supportive fiscal stance” via policies implemented by incoming President Donald Trump.
“In the aftermath of the US elections, there is widespread expectation of a significant change in direction for macroeconomic policy,” the report said.
The OECD edged up its forecast for growth in U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) this year to 1.5%, from the prior 1.4%, and hiked the estimate for next year to 2.3%, from the previous 2.1%.
The 2017 global GDP forecast was raised from 3.2% to 3.3%.
5. ECB’s Draghi set to talk stimulus at European Parliament
The European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi is scheduled to respond to questions from the European Parliament on Monday where he will likely be questioned about the euro zone monetary authority’s plans for stimulus.
Draghi has long come under fire for the negative effect of low rate policies on savers and may well be questioned about effects from the U.K.’s decision to leave the European Union, the progress with Greece’s bailout or the state of the Italian banking system and its nonperforming loans.
The ECB’s next policy decision is scheduled for December with most experts expecting to hear Draghi extend the asset purchase program beyond the current March 2017 end.