Bloomberg Business
-Global stock rebound: Mario Draghi promised further easing in March. China’s Vice President Li Yuanchao vowed to ‘look after’ stock market investors. Stocks have reacted very positively with Japanese shares surging by the most in four months, Chinese markets closing higher and European stocks rallying. U.S. futures are also indicating a higher open.
-Where next?:The recovery aside, there are diverse ideas on what is next for equities. Top investors were expecting further falls in U.S. stocks while speaking to Bloomberg yesterday. George Soros warned a China hard landing will deepen the rout in stocks. On the other hand, Heather Arnold, director of research at Templeton Global Advisors Ltd. says the gloom has gone too far and European stocks are expected to end the year 20 percent higher according to the average strategist estimate compiled by Bloomberg.
-Oil rally: Oil has made a big recovery, with both Brent and West Texas Intermediate trading above $31 a barrel this morning. Citigroup is calling oil the ‘trade of the year’ while technical analysts are looking for the price to hold above $34 a barrel before calling an end to the rout.
-E.C.B. weekend: The East Coast Blizzard is due to start later today and bring very heavy snow over the weekend, touching off winter storm warnings from Arkansas and Kansas to Pennsylvania. Almost 5,000 flights have already been cancelled in the U.S. for today and tomorrow. Gas bulls can see the silver lining to the cold snap as demand for the heating fuel jumps.
-Davos:The World Economic Forum continues in Davos. Already today U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has been warning of the ‘cocktail of risks’ facing the economy and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has been reassuring that he meant what he said at yesterday’s press conference. Nigeria’s oil minister, who is leading the best-dressed at Davos stakes, said that OPEC needs to meet soon in response to oil price movements.
-Mexico Prices Rose Less Than Forecast in 1st Half of January: Mexico’s consumer prices rose less than expected in the first half of January, keeping the annual inflation rate below the central bank’s target. Prices increased 0.03 percent from the previous two weeks, the national statistics institute said on its website Friday. Analysts expected an increase of 0.09 percent, according to the median forecast of 22 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. From a year earlier, prices rose 2.48 percent compared with 2.26 percent in the previous two weeks. Faster annual inflation was due in part to less favorable comparisons with a year ago, when the government eliminated long distance phone fees.
CNN Money
– International markets overview: European markets are up by more than 2% in early trading, led by shares in London and Paris. Asian markets were buoyed by the Nikkei which jumped 5.8%. The Hang Seng closed up 2.9% while shares in Shanghai closed 1.2% higher.
– Stock market movers — Starbucks, Xilinx, Antofagasta: Starbucks (SBUX) is down 3% in premarket trading on the back of disappointing revenue numbers released on Thursday. Chip maker Xilinx (XLNX) jumped 9% in premarket trading on talk it might be a takeover target after unveiling stellar results. Chilean miner Antofagasta (ANFGF) is up 7% in early London trading — the biggest mover of the commodity plays in the FTSE 100.
– Earnings and economics:Before the opening bell, GE (GE), Legg Mason (BWG), Sotheby’s (BID), Citizens Financial (CFG)and Sun Trust (STIPRE) will report earnings. The Eurozone Purchasing Manager’s Index came in lower than expected, indicating that Europe’s economies are starting the year slowly. The data might be more ammunition for the ECB to boost stimulus in March. Finally, Wall Street will be watching for new data on existing home sales for December, which come out at 10 a.m. ET.
– Thursday market recap: The Dow Jones industrial average ended 0.7% higher, while the S&P 500 closed up 0.5% and the Nasdaq was unchanged.
-Mario Draghi calms markets with hint of more money: Mario Draghi gave fearful markets a shot in the arm Thursday without actually doing anything. His promise that the European Central Bank could pump out more money as early as March if necessary was enough to give stocks a lift and send the euro lower against the dollar. The ECB kept interest rates unchanged, as expected, and said it would continue to buy government bonds and other assets at a rate of 60 billion euros ($65 billion) a month.Speaking to reporters after the bank’s policy meeting, the ECB president said the outlook for the eurozone economy had clearly worsened since December due to uncertainty about global growth, volatile markets and geopolitical risks.