Courteney Morrison

A gorgeous day in London today and there was a definite temptation to spend the morning sat outside a coffee shop, reading the paper and watching the world go by – enjoy the simpler things in life – It was that kind of morning. No real reason to log on until 1 and get primed and ready for the CPI print which did indeed go on to dictate the day. March CPI was hot across the board though the breakdown was actually quite muted – Energy up 1.1% on the month vs 2.3% in February; Shelter was still 0…

The perfect storm it seemed today – a very thin Tuesday trading day pre U.S. CPI tomorrow felt on the cards with very little catching the eye overnight but certainly hints that there were a few things happening under the surface. We received a lot of questions and incoming on the fairly aggressive move lower in the European defence space from early in the session. Bear in mind that this sub-sector has been one of, if not the, best sectors in Europe for the past couple of years but the combined…

It’s a very big week and all focus on the U.S. as we get to see how some of the biggest names have faired through the start of the year. All attention on if they live up to high expectations, especially the top names and market leaders but any disappointment could be felt far and wide. Maybe there is a surprise or two to come (there always is after all) but you’ve got to think Scottie Scheffler is a warm favourite for good reason for the Masters which kicks off on Thursday. A Green Jacket the p…

I’ve been warned about the ‘terrible two’s’ for nearly a year but we’re finally there in the Morrison Household. Sleep deprivation, agitated by simple things, not good at sitting still and volatile mood swings – maybe the terrible two’s are a natural step on the path to being a Sales-Trader. This certainly feels a time to snooze that alarm and catch up on a bit of sleep right now as the morning news remains on the light side and a quick peak at the earnings calendar shows that JPM kick us off ‘…

There is definitely still a sense that there are lots of people away from their desks and taking advantage of the shortened week here in Europe. The plus side is it is already Wednesday, it is lighter in the evening, and it’s nearly the weekend but those looking for some direction today were left wondering as the Stoxx 600 ended the day +33bps, recovering a little of yesterday’s loss but without much fanfare. Lots of Fed Speakers this week and maybe the market is waiting to hear more from them…

Unexpected sunshine on Saturday really was the icing on the cake for the Easter weekend… So often in this country it is the other way around! Arguably Q1’s equity performance was a slightly unexpected surprise to the upside and we begin Q2 wondering where things may go. More questions than answers at this stage but that is always the case at the start of something. We all know past performance is no indicator of future performance but those looking for signs of what a +>10% rise for the S&P 500…

Well there we have it Q1 is over and done with and it’s been a very good quarter for Equities. We haven’t had any rate cuts, Oil is back climbing, yields are fairly solid and yet Equities across Europe and the U.S. are at or near all-time highs. Impressive. Italy leads the way thanks to the banks, followed by the Euro Stoxx 50 and the DAX whilst the UK…well we’re lagging behind but still +3% on the year. Easter then a chance to relax, spend some time with Family and importantly regroup before Q…

I’ve been reading quite a bit over the last few days about the gruelling, non-guided, 100mile, 60,000 ft elevation Barkley ultramarathon in the U.S. which is started in the unorthodox way by the race director lightening a cigarette. Not to mention the fact that you have just 60 hours to complete this but a British female by the name of Jasmin Paris just became the first female to complete the test (and only the 20th person ever!) What a legend. Simply incredible and it made me tired just readin…

We’ve always said we enjoy replies to the Daily Snapshot and if that happens to be a photo of the ski slopes today then that is just fine by us – it looked like a great day out there! A couple more runs for Equity markets to get through before Après this weekend but today started with a little blue run down to the top as the start of this holiday interrupted fortnight started without much fanfare. The month and quarter end is in danger of slipping by without anyone really noticing but we’d sti…

Whilst recovering from my knee operation I have certainly watched my fair share of TV. Kin on the iPlayer was very good, I’m desperate for the next series of Yellowstone to be released (if it ever is!) and I just finished the fourth series of Fauda last night which was just superb and a completely gripping. It’s probably a bit of a stretch to say that Equity markets are ever gripping but as they climb to yet new highs they’re certainly not lacking interest and the Stoxx 600 closed up 94bps. Exp…