World shares higher

On Wednesday global shares were higher and the bond market was stable after reassurances from U. S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that the Fed i s not rushing to raise rates, but European stocks strived to gain momentum.

The market i s still feeling the after- effects of the Fed’s unexpected prediction for rate hikes as soon as 2023 last week, which hit stocks, l i fted the dollar and triggered the U. S. bond yield curve to flatten.

Powell tried to calm i nvestors on Tuesday, saying that the central bank will watch a broad set of j ob market data to evaluate the economic recovery from COVID- 19, rather than rush to raise rates on the basis of fear of inflation.

The MSCI world equity i ndex, which evaluates shares in 49 countries, was up 0.1% on the day at 0753 GMT, having recovered from the one- month low it hit foll owing the Fed’s meeting. However, MSCI’s main European Index strived to i ncrease momentum, down 0.3%. The pan- European STOXX 600 was 0.2% lower on the day but was up around 1.6% from the lows it hit on Monday.

Early PMI data showed that euro zone business growth accelerated at i ts fastest pace i n 15 years in June as the easing of more lockdown measures and the releasing of pent- up demand drove a surge i n the bloc’s l eading services i ndustry.

Germany’s private sector growth also increased to its highest level in more than a decade in June, the PMI survey showed. In France, business activity was higher, but not as much as expected.

Oil prices i ncreased after i ndustry data showed U. S. crude inventories fell more than expected. Gold was higher, recovering after it dropped to its lowest since late April after the Fed last week.

Elsewhere, bitcoin gained around 5% on the day, above the $ 34,000 mark. The cryptocurrency dropped to as low as $ 28,600 on Tuesday - its lowest since January.

This article was compiled by BOV Asset Management Limited, a member of the BOV Group. BOV Asset Management,TG Complex, Suite 2, Level 3, Brewery Str., Mriehel BKR 3000. Email: infoassetmanagement@bov.com Internet address: www.bovassetmanagement.com. BOV Asset Management is licensed by the MFSA.