New S&P Record High.

The US S&P index reached a record high on Tuesday despite the continued concerns for the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The index closed at 3,389.78 which was about 3 points higher above the previous February 19^th record.

There were similar movements in other US indexes as the Nasdaq hit another record high and the Dow Jones is now only 5% from its February record.

Also in the US, Joe Biden has been officially anointed as the Democratic presidential candidate.  The presidential hopeful was helped with glowing testimonials from elder statesmen.  Former Democratic presidents, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter endorsed Mr Biden. The former Republican Secretary of State Colin Powell also got behind the Democratic nominee.

The FOMC minutes are released later today which will give a further steer on the overall US economic outlook.

Closer to home, Pizza Express joined M&S yesterday by announcing further job losses as the UK high street continues to feel the effects of the pandemic. The casual dining chain plans to closed 73 of its UK sites with the potential loss of 1,100 jobs. It is hoped that the planned closures will protect the remaining 9,000 workers at the pizza chain.

In slightly more optimistic news, there were positive readings for UK Consumer and Retail Price Indexes released early this morning. The CPI figure for July was expected to be 0.6% but the number came in at 1%.

Sterling has started the morning on the front foot with gains against both the Euro and US Dollar.

With Consumer Price Index data due out from the Eurozone later this morning the market will look to compare the positive data seen in the UK and could lead to further movements in the GBP-EUR pair.

Economic Calendar