Afternoon Market Update – 02/12/2016 – by Jaz Singh

A cautious tone takes precedence in financial markets this morning with stocks declining across the board. In fact global equities are in line for their first weekly losses since Trump was elected. The DAX has found some support at the 10400 handle after being in a steady decline from over the past 2 sessions. This selloff in stocks comes as political risks rise in the Eurozone along with increased odds of tapering by the ECB. In currency markets we find the dollar index slipping some 0.4 percent as we prepare for the NFP numbers this afternoon. We must note that a December hike is fully priced in so a better than expected number may not lead to a sustained rally in the dollar. The yen has snapped back its declines from this week, USDJPY currently near the 114.00 level after finding double top resistance at 114.750. Sterling has continued its leg higher after yesterday’s news signaling a softer Brexit stance, with cable comfortably above 1.26. Other than NFPs this afternoon we also have unemployment data from Canada.