27th April 2009 Mid-morning comment from IG Index

UK stocks have started the week off negatively so far, with the FTSE down by around 20 points.

Travel companies have been particularly hit in morning trading as the markets have digested the swine flu news. British Airways and cruise company Carnival are two of the biggest losers, both off by more than 6% at the mid-morning stage. This has put a dent in the three-month recovery for BA, but there are early signs that some traders are viewing the initial sell-off as being somewhat overdone and a knee-jerk overreaction to the weekend’s news.

But after some strength towards the end of last week, markets do look vulnerable to further slides from these levels. Major indices such as the FTSE 100 and the S&P 500 have yet to better the levels hit in early-to-mid April, so further choppy trading could well be the order of the day. Looking ahead to the US session, at the moment we are expecting the Dow to open down around 90 points lower from Friday’s close – again on swine flu concerns. With no major economic announcements due out of the States today, it could be a somewhat flat session ahead. As has happened in the UK, any strength in US stocks may prove to be too much of a temptation for traders to take some money off the table as the markets struggle to find direction.

Click here to go to IG Index

David Jones is Chief Market Strategist at IG Index. We do not endorse the information and analysis available in this comment and it is provided purely for information purposes only and is delivered as a personal view by the writer. Under no circumstances is the information in this comment to be used or considered as an offer to sell, or a solicitation of any offer to buy. While all reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information contained herein is not untrue or misleading at the time of publication, we make no representation as to its accuracy or completeness and it should not be relied upon as such. The investments referred to herein may not be suitable investments for all persons accessing this page. You should carefully consider whether all or any of these are suitable investments for you and if in any doubt consult an independent adviser. We accept no liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from use of the information on this web page. Please see our Terms and Conditions.

User Ratings

Ratings :

Article Tools

1741 clicksPrintPost To Twitter Share on Facebook Add Comment

Tags

Tags:  No tags added